Gavin and Stacey is reason for scrapping licence fee.
The Jon Gaunt Show
Jon Gaunt
4.6 • 1.2K Ratings
🗓️ 19 December 2024
⏱️ 30 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The overwhelming success of Gavin and Stacey is proof that the BBC no longer needs the outdated and unfair licence fee. I discuss why the revival of this James Corden and Ruth Jones comedy highlights the BBC’s ability to attract commercial sponsors and generate revenue without forcing UK households to pay a compulsory poll tax. If shows like Coronation Street can thrive on ITV with sponsorship, why can’t the BBC adapt?
The licence fee is an archaic system introduced in a pre-digital age. With the rise of streaming platforms like Netflix, Amazon, and YouTube, it’s time to rethink compulsory funding for public broadcasting. Sports coverage, popular dramas, and even BBC radio could survive—and thrive—in a competitive, commercial market. Selling off BBC radio would level the playing field for commercial stations, ensuring fair competition and media diversity.
Join the debate as I examine the future of British broadcasting, the fairness of the licence fee, and the pressing need for reform. Don’t forget to LIKE, COMMENT, and SUBSCRIBE for more UK politics, news, and free speech debates.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi. The very success of Gavin and Stacey is the reason why the BBC license fee must be cut in the new year. |
| 0:11.8 | Welcome to the John Gorn podcast. Listen to what I've got to say. It makes perfect sense. |
| 0:16.3 | Are you completely fed up of the way the BBC, the British Broadcasting Corporation, |
| 0:24.0 | some people say the British bullshit corporation, other people the Brexit Broadcasting |
| 0:28.8 | Corporation are behaving about Gavin and station. |
| 0:33.0 | Look, I get it. |
| 0:34.3 | It's their big success. |
| 0:36.2 | One of the only successes in the last few years, but the hype |
| 0:40.7 | they're putting behind it for Christmas Day is outrageous. How much free publicity? It's not free. |
| 0:47.9 | We're paying for it. Are they getting? Nearly every program you turn on is plugging Gavin and Stacey. |
| 0:55.9 | Every program. |
| 0:57.2 | Just how rich is James Corden going to get off the back of it? |
| 1:01.9 | Is it right? |
| 1:03.1 | The BBC uses their monopoly, state-funded position, |
| 1:08.8 | to push their products so hard. |
| 1:12.1 | I know it doesn't really matter on one level because linear TV is dead or certainly |
| 1:17.1 | dying, but it can't be right, can it? |
| 1:20.4 | That even news programs. |
| 1:22.0 | I mean, I was watching the one show, and they had another plug for it last night. |
| 1:25.8 | Larry Lamb was on, one of my favourite ever actors. |
| 1:28.5 | I love the actors in it. There's some great people in Gavin and Station. I don't think it's very good. |
| 1:34.4 | I think it's pretty average. Rob Bryden is as funny as a dose of hemorrhoids as far as I'm concerned, but that's a subjective view. I just don't get it. However, |
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