Like many people, I am often frustrated and infuriated by the BBC. This is particularly the case amongst those of us who have worked for it and can see what a fantastically wasteful and bureaucratic monolith it can be, even while we love working there and admire what, at its best, it stands for.
Yet credit where credit is due for Stargazing Live, three programmes this week which drew big and appreciative audiences, educated and informed about a subject that fascinates and yet confuses millions and even managed to find a planet which will now bear the name of the viewers who spotted it.
This, rather than the vapid trash of Saturday nights, is what the BBC ought to be doing. I'm not saying that they shouldn't be making mass entertainment programmes, I'm not arguing for elitism. The BBC should not be turned into the broadcasting equivalent of the Royal Opera House. But why do they have to compete with ITV for the lowest common denominator audience? The BBC at its best makes challenging, daring programmes. The BBC at its best makes ITV raise its game.
And this was the BBC at its best. It used all of the resources at its disposal to make genuinely interesting and educational television. It may even have inspired future scientists, maybe another Brian Cox.
A couple of years ago I applied to the BBC for a production job. I didn't get it. But as part of the application we were asked to come up with ideas for programming. My idea was a kind of beginners guide to astronomy. Lo and behold the very next year this show cropped up. It has now had two highly successul outings. Now this may be entirely a coincidence. And even if it wasn't, there is no copyright in ideas. And anyway, I enjoyed the show. So you're welcome, BBC. And, just so you know, I have plenty more ideas where that came from.
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