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I have not seen a huge amount of the BBC coverage of Royal Ascot but here is something i wish to get of my chest.
Ascot is not about style,glamour,fashion,this seasons colours,what to be seen in,which hat looks good,does this go with that,was that dress bought in Primark or Harrods,do those shoes match the outfit,does that handbag contain all your Ascot essentials.
NONONONONO
First and foremost Ascot is about HORSERACING.
You know those huge animals that run past the stands 6 times a day every half an hour with those little people on top of them.
London Fashion Week is about fashion hence why it is called that, sorry if its confusing.
I do own 2 suits and a nice selection of shirts and ties to wear when i go racing and i do not go to have some smug pretensious T%$T come over and ask me about them and where i bought them.
I agree wholeheartedly Neil, but until a field of rampaging horses turns up during London Fashion Week I think your comparison is a little one-sided!
As a terrestrial channel the BBC has to cater for all tastes and, unfortunately for horseracing fans, this includes the glamour side of festivals such as Royal Ascot. It’s a sad fact that not everyone who goes racing is there actually watch it (a la the young woman interviewed by Angus McNae prior to the Derby, who said when asked about the event I have no idea what’s going on) and the same will, I imagine, be true of those watching at home.
The really annoying thing is that the quality of BBC programming in general is appalling, and the horse-centred elements of the show offer little content and remain wholly uninformative. And how Angus Loughran can be commenting on betting having recently been declared bankrupt (that’s not to reinforce any stigma already attached to people in similar situations, but such status should immedaitely disqualify you from publicly commenting on any financial matters) is beyond me.
could’nt agree with you more neil.
spent the day channel hopping from atr to bbc when ads were on, came to the point when the ads were better viewing than the bbc.
what little racing coverage we get from the bbc now for our licence money to be taken up with such trivia was ridiculous , nobody interested in fashion is going to watch 2 hours of racing , so who are they appealing to , just seems like more days out for the bbc luvvysI switched on to radio 5 this morning hoping to get some Ascot news/features.
Some hope.
What I actually got was two 3 minute segments just before 7am and 8am featuring the pitiful Luke Harvey who mentioned one race name (the King’s Stand) and one horse’s name (Henrythenavigator), spending the remaining 5 minutes and 45 seconds twittering and giggling hysterically about dress codes and visible pantie lines.
I don’t get this sort of sh1te when I tune in for some cricket news, so why do I have to put up with it when it’s racing?
I suppose we just have to put up with the fashion rubbish. BBC must have done some homework and found there is a significant amount of people interested in fashions of Royal Ascot. They no doubt find it increases their audience.
It is without doubt enfuriating for us racing enthusiasts. I want to know how the horses are behaving in the paddock, not the posh totty.Fashions do seem to be taking over, whenever there is a news report on Royal Ascot the horses seldom get a mention.
Mark
Value Is EverythingI agree entirely.
The BBC as an institution is now a joke in itself, a left wing propaganda machine that has long since abandoned quality in favour of liberal political ideals.
Their coverage of racing once so appreciated is now absolutely abysmal.
The presenters are awful (largely), the content is awful and to be frank if there is an alternative it isn’t worthy of watching.
ATR isn’t great it’s coverage is somewhat limitted but then it doesn’t have the funding or the resources of the BBC – at least it concentrates on the racing.
With regards to James Sherwood I’d love him to approach me at Royal Ascot – the Beeb would then be broadcasting comments they hadn’t bargained for.
I find the mute button very useful when the fashion talk starts. Actually the mute button is handy when most of the BBC pundits are talking as well.
I think Kevin Darley has done pretty well since he’s joined though. He speaks well and comes across better than Willie Carson or Ray Cochrane.
I joined the forum around this time last year and one of the first discussions I got involved with was this very same subject.
I completely agree that fashion shouldn’t be a part of the BBC’s coverage but people argued well for it to be shown so I guess some people like it.
The simple answer, for me anyway, is just to keep channel hopping when the BBC goes into it’s fashion mode. Yesterday was ideal because when the BBC went fashion crazy, this was about the time that the Thirsk races were being run on RUK. On returning back to the BBC it was all about the horses thankfully.
Anyone who doesn’t have RUK for when the BBC do the fashion slot I suggest go and paint your fence and watch it dry for a few minutes
Mike
I am also not that keen on the fashion talk at Ascot, i was pulling my hair out last year, so this year i am recording the programme on sky plus, just forward the crap. Horse’s all the way
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The Ascot authorities will always make far more money by promoting the ‘fashion’ side of things rather than the quality of the racing.
There would be far less attending and far less meals and drinks consumed if they threw out the ‘dress code’ and folks like Mark Winstanley could be seen in trainers and jeans in the Royal Enclosure.
I have no doubt that there are many housevifes at home that watch the Royal Ascot coverage solely for the fashion and the BBC has a duty to them also.
Take the jockeys wives item yesterday the BBC did that showed what a few of the jockeys wifes get up to during Royal Ascot and although they were dressed nicely the subject of who made what dress did not come into it. It was about how their husbands, and the diets they face in order to keep riding. I thought that was good. Though I could have done without hearing about Frankies ‘sack and crack’ being trimmed!
Claire Balding again did a good job. But the BBC must have some ‘arrangement’ as to who that Claire Balding ‘suddenly’ meets as the editors managed to find clips of Zara Phillips riding her horse in no time at all.
Stato aka Angus Lochrane is not bankrupt. I believe he convinced a judge that some court papers sent to him were never received by him and that if they had been received he would have dealt with them. He has now settled his debt and was not actually listed in The London Gazette (the official paper for bankruptcy and insolvency).
Its still better that ATR and if C4 had the rights to cover Royal Ascot they would also give a lot of air time with the fashion side of things.
Perhaps it is because I am a dirty old man but did I detect a touch of sexual tension in the air when Ms. Balding interviewed Ms. Phil(l)ips?
Colin
Didn’t Geoff Banks and Yvette Jelfs (???) do the fashion in the early part of 2000’s??? Back then they used to sit in the studio and comment on shots that had been taken, but that used to literally last for five minutes and only happened three or four times a programme. Now it seems a fashion show with a bit of racing thrown in.
As for James Sherwood, he is a pompus prat who is trying to come across and no holds barred bloke, but in fact he is just another stuck up critic who has no place on our screens.
Mind you, Willie Carson intereviewing techinques are so cringeworthy it’s untrue!!!
Perhaps it is because I am a dirty old man but did I detect a touch of sexual tension in the air when Ms. Balding interviewed Ms. Phil(l)ips?
Colin
I think you are probably right… on both counts.
Though the sexual tension you allude to (which one couldn’t help but notice), seemed all one way. Calm down Clare, she’s spoken for !
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I’m surprised that the BBC haven’t gone down the Wimbledon and Open Golf route and offered a selection of things to watch using the Red Button.
We could have 3 1/2 hours of fashion only or 3 1/2 hours of racing only.
Whether we racing fans like it or not, Ascot is about more than just the horses, just ask my mrs, its the only meeting she’s ever been to and the only time I can watch racing in the front room without her moaning.
With 35 mins between races there’s plenty of time for all the other rubbish the beeb show without detracting from the main attraction and gives me time to make a brew or whatever without missing anything.
Also its not just the beeb doing, channel 4 have gone down the fashion road a lot over the past 2 or 3 years as well, guess thats got to be expected for programmes being shown during "women’s" daytime TV schedules.Personally, I hate the fashion parts of BBC Racing, but you have to remember they dont break every 15 minutes for 5 minutes and therefore have to keep showing and talking about things all day.
There is only so much you can moan about the latest Jamie Spencer mistake and only so much you can hype up the next O’Brien classic/group 1 winner.
Anyway, I don’t mind really, it gives you time to make a cup of tea
How long before us peasants are banned from going near or entering Royal Ascot???? Not long before the Blue bloods and Elitists ban the working class from going unless we are carrying their coats for them M,Lord!!
Is it just me or are certain tracks drifting back to the days of mainly catering for the Rich n the Toffs and to hell with the common man??
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