No more LIVE Blue Peter

We wrote about the changing world of children's tv several years back looing at its challenges, saw how effectively ITV scrapped Children's ITV and decimated the funded for any home grown programs.

This week I bring a kind of update.

The weekend started pretty much with waking up to reports from various weekend newspapers that the long running children's tv program, Blue Peter will cease to make live programs from its studio at Salford, Lancashire and instead be entirely pre-recorded.

The claim the show is to be axed however is not true as much as some have pushed for it over the years.

Shockingly last Friday's show was actually the last live one although neither presenters, the children taking part or us the viewers actually knew as none of us were informed.

It remains unclear as to what exactly the role of all three presenters, Abby, Joel and Shini will be beyond being in any pre-recorded clip as each will need to be "anchored" to form a cohesive program whither or not it is shown first on iPlayer online or transmitted on a traditional 'linear' tv channel.

Bonnie The Dog in the mid 1980's joined the show and today Henry fulfils a similar function,  a pet to children who may not able to have one and a way of show love, care and affection but in this format will Henry play a role.

His antics on set not always going where or doing what the presented wanted was always loved for the spontenity it gave you.

It is understood that the BBC is planning on axing the BBC CBBC channel for 6 to 12 year olds and going digital only at some future point, a channel that was first established in 2002 and the movement of all children's programming to it in 2012 after the "digital switchover" 

It's not as if Blue Peter has never had pre-recorded segments shot on film or tape from the 1960's onwards as those of us can recall things like John Noakes climbing Nelson's Column, the many summer expeditions that of necessity had to be or trips to various places but being live gave it an edge, the sense of not knowing what was going to happen next.

It made for memorable interviews on set, the possibility of a fluffed line or a animal misbehaving that as children we just laughed out loud at.

One memorable live show had people on from GirlGuiding in December 1970 where a camp fire was light as brownies and girl guides all sang around as nobody noticed until it was a bit late the campfire was getting out of control right next to them!

Things like "The Big Badge Wall" that celebrates achievements from posted art and details of challenges undertaken take on more as presenter show the weeks outstanding recipients as children cheer as they do for an artist performing or a live presenter challenge.

That is very stuff that will be lost from now on, the edge of the seat feel we get and which as children we so compared to a continuity linked series of pre-recorded items.

As ever the groan ups show their lack of understanding of what makes great tv even though we all know the world has changed since we first started watching not least how we do but we all saw saw things at the same time for very first time live.

Anyone who reads the BP Fan Club pages knows seeing and chatting about these live bits gets them so excited and happy. Many adults love live shows too for similar reasons but middle age preduces seem to think glorified podcasts are all we want.

This is a very retrograde step.

Annerversaries beget Memories

 

Events often bring back emotions and memories and this month has many dotted about not least that of Mum's funeral last Saturday, birthdays such as my own earlier in the month and yesterday it was Mum's which normally would of been marked by cards and a meal together.

In a few days time it would be my Parents wedding anniversary too.

Mum did lots of things, from helping in those earlier crawling, talking phases, helping with speech therapy over a period, trying to teach me how to tie shoe laces through encouraging me to take part in swimming competitions to suport in my career.

For that matter as I became more able, I helped support her in politics not least creating a major storm that put pay to an attempt to keep the public out of a major matter of community interest that conflivted with one members personal interests.

We both played major parts in the community taking part in civic events, representing the people of this area.

I took time out yesterday for silent prayer and reflection.

Thanks Mum.

Child Protection - some thoughts

 There are some topics I am usally wary of  mentioning one being anything connected to the parenting of actual children today for a number of reasons one being having no children of my own, I don't generally have a reason to push any one approach and for another a particular interest in some aspects is highly likely to totally misunderstood.

There is a ongoing discussion around the legal defence of "reasonable chastisement" when it comes to smacking children which given my adult work in child protection tends to be an area I legitimately had an interest.

I have views, you may have views too about that but we're NOT getting to debating that here and the wider parenting debate is one with polarized views, often hard for those of a generation to recognize.

Where I do feel there are issues is really more around legislating certain responses and measures that a parent may take as the one in law who is said to be responsible for that child so at the moment anything is observed or otherwise reported, a rigid process comes in and being in that line of work, I accept the need for investigation.

Often though it won't be an investigation, followed by guidance and maybe a warning but actually it will go into court in which I was involved personally.

We have "Bibles" of legal guidance inolving statute and case law established that you do look at in detirming if the case should go to court but there are whole areas where Parliament has decreed it is in "The Public Interest" that the matter should go before a court  regadless and a judge for them to detirmine.

That is where I while recognizing the concerns of others in Child Protection have my own in extending areas because the matter will not be resolved until it is heard in court and it may be he/she reviews and rejects it.

What has happened in the meantime is the parent has been investigated, other children interviewed and highly likely to kept a close eye on, the neighbourhood knows and is judging them and they may be suspended from work depending on the nature of it and contact with children or other vulnerable groups.

Because of the "blowback" many parents often leave contious disciplinary matters more to others rather than dealing directly with their own children which tends to enable some children to act in dangerous or anti-social ways.

The more you extend the States role in immediate family matters, the less actual parenting goes on and yet I would say, you might too, we have a duty to protect children so is bringing the law totally in which is a very blunt instrument necessary the right response all of the time which will happen if we criminalize some methods that society itself has differing views over?

Speaking personally I, feel in so far as abuse goes, we have the powers to  act as often those case have exceeded any legal defences and others can step in to those "on the edge" to provide better guidance and arranges for parenting course as where things go awry is in parents who lack the knowledge and confidence to parent fairly and where necessary, strictly, their children.

It may mean bring in support as some parents do struggle and struggling parents need help dealing with things such as housing issues, debt and own mental health issues and that is where behaviours that are a concern to all of us in child protection and welfare often stem from.

I'm less convinced more criminalization really helps us to do what matters. Protecting Children.

Teenbeat: 1979 revisited

Yesterday happened to be my birthday more of which will be written about elsewhere but birthdays are anniversaries that bring back memories from the past and for me 1979's was important as it was a year before my GCE's and I was laying the foundation of my record collector as a boy who loved music.

The Rolling Stones were an influence on me and between owning a few of their albums on record and having taped copies of others I bought this album originally issued in November 1966 as it had all but one of their pre 1967 singles on it.

It also happened it's September 1969 counterpart "Through The Past Darkly" was bought the same birthday for me by my older brother.

In terms of art and packaging it was excellent with a gatefold sleeve with the seriously arty "fish eye" picture of the group and photos on the gatefold.

The rear picture was used for the (inferior) U.S. version and at the time it was issued in mono and stereo.

If that wasn't enough there was an insert with even more photos and some information about the recordings.

It was a late 1970's pressing and I loved the disc, copying to tape straight away but it left after an ill advised clean with Surgical Spirit that destroyed one stylus as it unbonded the glue holding the stylus tip to the carrier.

I did get a early 80's edition but the cover and the vinyl was thin and by that point the insert had been dropped so I was very fortunate to spot a near mint (cover, insert, vinyl condition) edition from 1976 that was a very close match for that original recently.

So by this birthday, I've been able to restore it to the collection the way it was. 

In the same year an album entered my then meagre collection, a birthday present from the local independent store in the northern district of the city whose looks and track selection never really left me even in the days when it just was no longer available new in any format.

 

The collage style cover, bold coloured title and a great tag line on the rear top of the jacket just screamed Beatlemania as America fell for them in a package that mixed covers, new to america originals and a couple of newly recorded tracks that were to come on a British extended play 7 inch record.

 

My first copy with an Apple label went  for same reasons as the first album I mentioned being replaced in 1986 by a Purple capitol copy as I learned this and the other albums I grew up on were to be replaced by UK versions coming on compact disc too and hurried up being "last chance" copies for posterity.

After a long period where they were ignored as if they never existed, deleted from the catalogue they've  been reissued accepted as part of the legacy hence last years issue of the 1964 Capitol Albums in mono, a good number of which were bought.

 I decided to get a near mint  american stereo edition in the short lived 1980's rainbow rim label to go with my Canadian issues of the era probably as good as this record ever sounded, one I've always wanted.

This came while away for a few days and I'm delighted.

Looking back on it, a good number of those early albums were restored, often with period issues because to pick them up and play them takes me back to that time and all the memories from it.

This life and family

After last week's return with a fall that resulted in a much bruised lower arm and hand we have caught up on the blogs and seeing I really try to avoid writing too much about objects here I thought we'd go to something more fundermental.

Inspiration of sorts was down to an internet access issue where I was staying where it was said "We'll see the BT Engineer as they may not be familiar with the rest of you and what if they said something to either locals or the place owner?"

Needless to say after two attempts they still didn't come but anyway I digress.

This thing has on and off being going on with me personally since the late nineteen seventies in different ways from resuming with a more casual "play wear" look as I fought and ditched jeans to getting more olive hiking shorts for wearing when out hiking or visiting places with my parents.

As the decades moved on I found more around the sorts of short trousers and the kind of look I looked toward for more everyday life beyond work that intensified just before and especially through the Covid era to the point from getting up then that was how I was dressed, more like a school age if not school aged boy.

It's often said of smokers that being so familiar with smoke and its smell, you get blind to how it appears to others with in your jackets and coats and by around 2021 I was so used to me being more a boy and for that matter my folks were, you'd think nothing with it.

As with many families, we have people come over Christmas and for that matter we'd go visit them so when it was an Aunt phoned to say she and my older Cousin would be visiting I thought nothing of it beyond generally enjoying their company especially when I was a teen with them.

Well they came and it wasn't long before my Cousin noticed I was in short trousers and long socks  - wearing a shirt and tie has always been the norm for me when visting family socially from the earliest days - and my cousin just asked why as it had been a good number of years since we'd seen each other.

Well, I hadn't anticipated that so I though it was better to stay in the middle lane and simple say I much prefer to as they feel more comfortable on me rather than going down the lines of just why that was.

Mentally being sat next to her was not unlike that picture: Only one of us really was more the grown up and that's better for me.

Returning notes

We are back and in time as I hurt my left hand and side of my face in an accident, blogs will be updated in some semblence of order as I also catch up on post such as bank statements as well as comics that came in that period.

The area where I stayed had a lot of countryside around it although also had a lot of very narrow roads, practically farm tracks with a hint of tarmac tover undulating hills that on arrival had us wondering if we'd done in the suspension system of the car!

It was great to just get out and away from all the politics, endless updates on various sites and that and just play games, go for walks and have fun as little boy me.

This was one of several areas where the Snowdrops were out in force, next to the farmers fields and in the hills you could see in the afternoon the cattle moving across  which was a fascinating sight to observe.

bb

Paused edition

 

By the time most of you see this, I will be onboard a Transport For Wales train going across the Marches for a few days break which with the state of the world at the moment isn't a bad idea.

Fortunately a few injuries I sustained a couple of weeks ago are recovering well as cancelling wasn't something I was looking forward to doing as a break from things is definately needed and it's years since I was anywhere near where we're staying.

Forum will be looked after well until my return but next week's post will probably be delayed by a couple of days.

Toodle pip!