BBC is to scrap CBBC, BBC Four and its regional TV news programme in Oxford as it announces it will cut up to 1,000 jobs over the next few years
The BBC has announced major plans to save £500m including cutting 1,000 jobs
Corporation said it will axe channels including CBBC, BBC Four and Radio 4 Extra
It says £200m savings to help with funding gap caused by licence fee settlement
And bad news for fans of traditional radio like me! Goodbye Radio 4 on 198 khz longwave! I also listen to Ireland's Rte Radio 1 252 khz (A sort of cross between Radio 4 & Radio 2 how it was years ago!) which has been 'saved' twice by a fierce campaign by the Irish diaspora (mostly,elderly population living in the uk) Only a few years ago they switched off France Inter on 162 khz,wich used to broadcast a wide variety if interesting music,unlike the crappy pop music on most of our radio stations. (It fair,blasted into West Wales,throughout the day!) How long before long wave is mere static?! I find it interesting that they intend to remove the opt out content first! (The Shipping Forecast,Morning Service,Cricket)! A predictable tactic. You thereby remove the main reason why any remaining listeners would bother to listen to it,so the remaining audience dwindles away,and it's okay to dump it! Of course,another reason why the Long Wave frequency has been kept going is because of the Radio Teleswitch Service',whereby a signal broadcast alongside the Radio 4 signal is used to switch domestic electricity meters on and off! This is due to end in 2023,when meters using the Teleswitch service will be replaced by smart meter! Or,at least,that's the plan! Of course,there's this idea (urban myth) that the commanders of our Royal Navy submarines use the longwave signal to check that dear old blighty is still functioning in the event of a surprise,nuclear strike. If they can't hear the cricket or the morning service,they know we've all been blown up! 8)
