One theory is that BBC 1 and News be merged into a new station (I'll call it BBC Prime) where Salford and London share presentation and news duties until 7PM when the likes of Eastenders take over until say midnight when either the station closes or takes a simulacast of BBC World.
"BBC Prime" would certainly make use of the corporation's facitilies. The breakfast set at Salford would be regenerated into an all day studio with rotas of presenters from say 6-10, 10-2, and then 2-6.
At that point the evening schedule would kick in with a revamped BBC Newshour with a 20/20/20 split between London, Regions and Salford for Sportsline and from 7 OOV Continuity would continue. BBC World would take over in the small hours.In the best Nationwide/Sixty Minutes tradtition regional studios would be used for items
Good question but it can only be answered by looking at the following:
1. What sort of programmes will people in 2040 want to watch? As my background is in production rather than broadcasting, I know that apart from a small number of people who are interested in presentation most viewers watch programmes rather than TV channels which are just conveyor belts for programmes.
2. The demographics in 2040. I make an intelligent guess that most of the baby boomer generation will no longer be around then.
3. Whether or not the BBC will still exist funded by the TV licence or some other almost guaranteed source of income.
4. The overall future of linear TV.
5. The situation surrounding regional and local TV channels. Could regional ITV be resurrected even if it isn't on channel 3?
6. Whether or not there will still be a consumer demand for generalist 'something for everybody' TV channels like BBC1 and ITV1.
1. We simply don't know what kind of programmes will be popular in 2040. Let us assume that Eastenders still exist as does the kind of show that Strictly Come Dancing is. They'll be popular
2. The Baby boomers will be replaced by older Millenials and techno-savvy kids and teenagers
3. I can see some kind of combined utility bill
4. Linear TV will still IMO exist because today's viewers in their 20's and 30's may feel attached to something comforting.
5. I can't see local tv coming back. Calendar and the like may be strictly streaming
6. This is an issue which has been focused on in other threads. Now TV/Sky have specialised in genre specifc channels for years as have Viasat primarily because they have the programmes to show. BBC and ITV haven't anywhere near that level of surplus. Unless a majors shift occurs in who gets to show what then a linear BBC station of a sort will still exist mainly as "wallpaper"
Mass immigration has turned Britain into a patchwork quilt of communities, and as TV is a cultural medium it can only thrive if it reflects tastes and interests of the communities the transmitters broadcast to.
A local Kurdish barbers always had a TV on with a Kurdish TV channel but never ITV or an Indian TV channel.
I have wondered if TV (in terms of production) will end up diverging towards localised or international themes with national stuff 'squeezed' in the middle in the future.
TV - both production and broadcasting - is an industry that has to adapt to the potential of an increasingly disUnited Kingdom.
There are also issues surrounding a future prospect of an independent Scotland and either an independent Ulster or United Ireland.
Also London vs the rest of Britain / England.
Another factor is what the situation will be with American TV production as American programmes are (too?) dominant on British TV channels.
Before I reply to your post I feel a must give a warning. Awhile ago I started a thread what a possible Sinn Fein led government in the Irish Republic could mean to the British channels in Northern Ireland/Ulster and got called a stirrer and ignorant which really pissed me off so you may get something similar.
Anyway to answer. I've also seen Kurdish barbers and (i believe) a Pakistani cafe showing local stations (as in local to them such as GEO).
The issues I feel regarding localised television are multiple.
1. Programming. We've already seen the debacle of "That's.." and the "Made In..." stations and their varying successes and/or adoption of CBS Justice as a filler. Such future stations would have to ensure that they had enough in stock. I think there will always been room for national broadcasting even if its just a primetime service of soaps, drama, talent shows etc.
2. It's plausible to assume that production and broadcasting are
already
adapting .
to changes as the current situation shows. The likes of Zoom etc have proven that it is possible to contnue producing a quality service (even though I've seen more living rooms then Through The Keyhole and Homes Under The Hammer combined!)
3. London Live is AFAIA doing fairly well
4. The issue regarding US television is a concern as right now the likes of Channels 4 and 5 are using the likes of Friends and Everybody Loves Raymond as perpetual filler.
The EU Referendum result for England and Wales was split between most of London, the trendy cities, an affluent tract of the inland south, and the Welsh speaking areas vs everywhere else.
Following on from this was the 2019 general election result which highlighted a split between the progressive left and Metropolitan mindsets from London and the trendy cities vs the common folk from the provincial towns.
The old north vs south and working class vs middle class divisions which have towered over Britain (or at least England) throughout much of the 20th century are now pretty much history. Instead we have a society divided along completely different demographic planes.
A concern with the BBC and ITV is that their epicentres are in London and Manchester - the Metropolis and a trendy city. Much of provincial England takes a back seat in comparison when it comes to input. TV production and broadcasting run by progressive, liberal, and Metropolitan minds from London and trendy areas will end up being out of sync with the interests and requirements of common folk living in the provincial towns.
The American yardstick of liberal vs conservative appears to be becoming more relevant than the old British yardsticks of left vs right or working class vs middle class.
Hmm that's a very interesting theory. You seem to be envisiaging a future where there is more rural "small town" style tv alongside the major metropolitan stations such as Australia pre-aggregation
When you talk about liberal vs progressive. I can't see a Fox News style channel on British Tv anytime soon. Fox News itself as well as Press TV vanished due to fears about impartiality and bias.
With the lack of production centres outside London and Manchester the thing that comes to my mind is finances. We've seen ITV slash their regional centres with the creation of Tyne Tees/Border and HTV West/Westcountry "super-regions". Unless there is a radical change in the next 20 years from ITV then they only viable way as far as I'm concerned would be financially indepedent "pastoral" networks and again the issue of programming comes to mind.
You seem to be envisiaging a future where there is more rural "small town" style tv alongside the major metropolitan stations such as Australia pre-aggregation
In some respects, yes, but remember that people watch TV programmes rather than TV channels.
Quote:
When you talk about liberal vs progressive. I can't see a Fox News style channel on British Tv anytime soon. Fox News itself as well as Press TV vanished due to fears about impartiality and bias.
That could be another nail in the coffin for linear TV. Even more controversial than Fox News or Press TV is that the BNP once attempted to establish their own internet based TV channel outside of the jurisdiction of Ofcom.
Quote:
With the lack of production centres outside London and Manchester the thing that comes to my mind is finances. We've seen ITV slash their regional centres with the creation of Tyne Tees/Border and HTV West/Westcountry "super-regions". Unless there is a radical change in the next 20 years from ITV then they only viable way as far as I'm concerned would be financially indepedent "pastoral" networks and again the issue of programming comes to mind.
I have previously discussed whether ITV functioning as publisher broadcaster and outsourcing production to indies from 1993 has been a success story and after factoring out programmes from Thames it's been very chequered at its best.
I can't honestly say that Tyne Tees & Border and West & South West really are super regions because similar regions could theoretically have existed back in the 1980s.
Yes, people watch the programmes themselves but its my belief that the "wraparound" of the channels themselves provide a sense of continuity and maybe even comfort.
I think I remember hearing about the BNP trying to start a channel. I think Charlie Brooker showed a clip of Nick Griffin making Shepherd's Pie while fulmainating about some appalling policy!
AFAIK Carlton was a publisher broadcaster. The only programmes they made were those under the LNN banner.
The super regions could have existed back then but regional tv was a big thing back then and the IBA had some clout.