When BBC North West Tonight shows signs (and intent) towards improving news- coverage across the northern two- thirds of North West England it is good to point this out. Tonight’s Regional Bulletin (with the wonderful Annabel Tiffin) is a case in-point: Out of ten big news stories there were two about Cumbria (and part of a third also concerning Cumbria). These were news items about Barrow Football Club’s getting a new manager, the funeral of the father and two children (from Dalton in Furness, near Barrow) killed by a drunk driver on Father’s Day and a hotel in Ambleside featured in the news- item about more service- based businesses being allowed to open.
Lancashire also featured: There was a major spread about Blackpool Pleasure Beach re-opening (with donkeys giving rides to children) for the first time since the Coronavirus Lockdown. There was also a news -item about Scarisbrick Hall School, near Ormskirk, in West Lancashire where the High School children have been communicating with children in almost 200 other countries via Zoom following the Coronavirus Crisis (through a global project connecting young people all around the World).
And there was still plenty of room for coverage of events in Liverpool, Manchester and in Cheshire too. This proves that it is possible to provide news- coverage that is seen as fair and balanced for every corner of North West England. The programmers at BBC North West Tonight should do this more often.
The BBC North West weather- forecast appears to indicate a possible Statement of Intent: The outlook for improving weather featured four principal locations across the North West of England- Manchester, Liverpool and Chester in the south of the Region – and Keswick (close to the very heart of Cumbria and slightly north of (and outside) the BBC North West transmission boundary. But there it is- Keswick- because it is in Cumbria and very much part of North West England.
I also noticed a little clip on BBC North West Tonight’s Facebook page the other day: It was about a tourist attraction, at Braithwaite near Keswick called Alpacaly Ever After- where tourists can go and see a whole community of alpacas! It is to be hoped that these Statements of Intent reflect a commitment to cover Cumbria better- including those parts of the county to the north of BBC North West’s transmission area- so that Cumbrian viewers of BBC North West Tonight get better all- round local news-coverage: We shall see!
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Published by northwestisnorthwest
My name is Ian Pennell and I am a freelance Book-keeper. I live near Alston in the North Pennines in north-east Cumbria. I used to live and work in Lancaster until 19 years ago and have friends in northern North West England. I have two Websites devoted to campaigning for local, relevant Regional TV, one for Cumbria/ North Lancashire the other for Northumberland/Scottish-Border.............................................................................................................................. A big problem is that the Regional Television Bulletins for the North West covers the southern third of the Region about 90% (plus a part of Derbyshire which is NOT the North West of England), covers the middle third of North West England poorly and covers the northern third of North West England not at all! When I was studying at Lancaster University, I used to watch BBC1 North West Tonight because it covered areas up around where I was brought up- in northern Cumbria as well as more immediately locally around Lancaster. Then I came home one day, turned on BBC1 North West Tonight wondering why they were silent on Cumbria and discovered why: Most of Cumbria had been chopped off the weather-map! ........................................................................
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In rural and northern Northumberland too, Regional TV, as is received by viewers, tends too often to be Tyneside/ Wearside/ Teesside- focussed with little news locally. Communities in North Northumberland have strong links across the Border into south-east Scotland and towards Edinburgh but none of the Regional TV News- services serving Northumberland today ever goes across the Scottish Border to cover significant happenings of interest to North Northumbrians. The region of Northumberland/ Scottish Borders/ East and Mid Lothian area is vast- but it is largely overlooked by mainstream Regional TV! .................................................................................................................... ................
In two websites, one for northern North West England and the Isle of Man (a country in it's own right that does not have it's own TV service!), and another Website focussing on Northumberland, North Yorkshire and the North Pennines I make the point that Regional TV that informs viewers of important things in their local area is a Public Service that must be funded better, in order that rural areas of northernmost England get good geographic- appropriate local news-coverage.
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