Billy Connolly made a funny remark/joke about reality TV in one of his stand ups. I remember him summing it all up quite well in typical Connolly fashion.

Andy wrote:

I'll put it this way. I'd not be impressed as someone who can only afford Free to air. And there's more people like that than many care to admit.

I would agree to a certain extent. However, I'd argue that the channel explosion just makes quality factual TV harder to find rather than actually diminished. BBC1, BBC2, BBC4 and Channel 4 still air quality factual television. A lot of tat as well, sure, but it's still there.

Probably right. It's just a lot of docs I now see , particularly on BBC, have become very dumbed down in their presentation. Attempts at dramatisation to tell a story for example. I have seen this technique done in older works such as Sagan's Cosmos - but it was done in small doses as a background to narration and was more of an illustrative technique to try and  create a sense of context - rather than one that tries to build tension as if it were an adventure story. It simply isn't needed and cheapens the subject matter.

CGI, while a great opportunity for providing illustration and context, is also over-used and misused. Several times I have given up on series because of its apparant use in place of information.

As for those shown on commercial stations - it is tiring being told the same fact 3-4 times either side of a break such that content is stretched paper thin.

There's a lot of great content online but that isn't available to a lot of people for various reasons and the BBC needs to stop trying to play commercial TV games and get on with informing and entertaining. That's my tuppence worth at any rate.

You people watch TV when you could be playing games?!  For shame.

hylian_elf wrote:

You people watch TV when you could be playing games?!  For shame.

I'll be playing more now - look out Gigawing.

He's turned into the Philomena Cunk of BIG SCIENCE.

Having said that, I still like the guy. I think he'd do great if his producers would just let him get on with informing and stopped trying so hard to make him entertaining and therefore accessible.

I enjoyed it, it was a bit of fun.
Same with Cox's other shows, they are more light weight and easier to consume.

If you want hard science read a book.

Liveinadive wrote:

If you want hard science read a book.

I would've settled for amusing.

@equinox_code

Iannucci's been there

Na, Gamesmaster was great though

I like Cox.

Anyone who does like him should check out the Infinite Monkey Cage podcast, great stuff.

Your brain would explode.

You're wishing for your brain to explode? While in mid-air?

That just sounds messy for everyone below.

Yossarian wrote:

retroking1981 wrote:

Mrs Brown's Boys is fucking awful. David Attenborough is the saving grace of the BBC atm, along with Brian Cox.

While I like Cox, I do find his shows more and more annoying as he ponces around the world talking about tangentially-related things for 10 minutes before spending 5 minutes actually talking about the physics that I tuned in to see.

They need more Jim Al Khalili on the box I reckon, I used to listen to his Life Scientific and have enjoyed most of the telly stuff he's done, but I guess Cox is big box office unfortuantely