BBC Coverage

[BDunnell]

Again, not good from Legard, though not as bad as I've heard him. Recalling Mark Webber's 1998 Le Mans accident was a good bit of relevant knowledge that many would have forgotten.

[DazzlaF1]

From Jake Humphrey's twitter feed, looks like the Forum wont be shown after all


Really sorry guys. The power cut proved terminal. Highlights bbc3 tonight. Full service shall be resumed at Silverstone-can't wait!!!!!!

[52Paddy]

Legard was his usual awful self. I must say, EJ really pushed the boat out so far though. I think he's great. Creates so much tension and makes us realise that the crew are only human :p :

[MrMetro]

Legard was his usual awful self. I must say, EJ really pushed the boat out so far though. I think he's great. Creates so much tension and makes us realise that the crew are only human :p :

Indeed

[UltimateDanGTR]

Legard was his usual awful self. I must say, EJ really pushed the boat out so far though. I think he's great. Creates so much tension and makes us realise that the crew are only human :p :

I think it was great when EJ put his arm around bernie ecclestone's next. it was quite beautiful, for obvious reasons.

[fandango]

Normally I watch the race on Spanish TV, and they're quite biased towards Alonso, with De La Rosa and Alguersuari getting many mentions too. But seeing as I'm back in Erin's emerald shores I tried the BBC: Hamilton, Hamilton, Hamilton, Lewis....blah, blah, Hamilton..... I couldn't believe it. At least the Spanish ones admit they're one-sided......

[52Paddy]

But seeing as I'm back in Erin's emerald shores

:s mokin:

[Tazio]

I have my choice of watching it on speedtv on a TV or the BBC on the net.
BBC wins hands down.
If for no other reason commercial breaks!

[Somebody]

I never noticed this at the time, but...

http://adamcooperf1.com/2010/07/13/bbc-furious-as-ron-dennis-sabotages-eddie-jordan/

[UltimateDanGTR]

I never noticed this at the time, but...

http://adamcooperf1.com/2010/07/13/bbc-furious-as-ron-dennis-sabotages-eddie-jordan/

doesnt sound like a very funny joke to me.....


anyway on an unrelated note, something that was very clear to me in the BBC coverage of the British Grand Prix is that the BBC make the viewer feel part of the F1 family, I cant quit put a finger on it but watching the BBC coverage makes me feel more involved with F1 and the BBC, and not least Jenson and Lewis. it really is excellent coverage, even with legard.

anyone else get that sense?

[AndyL]

doesnt sound like a very funny joke to me.....

I don't know, if it had been done to Jake or DC or, heaven forbid, Martin Brundle, then of course it would have been a grave error of judgement. But come on, it was Eddie Jordan... at least Ron didn't dump a load of concrete blocks in front of him :D


anyway on an unrelated note, something that was very clear to me in the BBC coverage of the British Grand Prix is that the BBC make the viewer feel part of the F1 family, I cant quit put a finger on it but watching the BBC coverage makes me feel more involved with F1 and the BBC, and not least Jenson and Lewis. it really is excellent coverage, even with legard.

Absolutely. It pains me to say it but I think Bernie has to take some credit, making the drivers more available to the media.
But the BBC are without doubt providing the best F1 coverage ever in the UK, and judging by what's said on this forum, probably the best in the world. When I see what people are saying about the likes of Speed TV, I feel that we're extremely lucky that Legard's commentary and EJ's shirts are the worst we have to complain about.

[TMorel]

I'm guessing it was staged/scripted/whatever during the redbutton forum, but I don't care, that little kid asking Eddie where he buys his clothes was priceless.

[wedge]

I don't know, if it had been done to Jake or DC or, heaven forbid, Martin Brundle, then of course it would have been a grave error of judgement. But come on, it was Eddie Jordan... at least Ron didn't dump a load of concrete blocks in front of him :D



Absolutely. It pains me to say it but I think Bernie has to take some credit, making the drivers more available to the media.
But the BBC are without doubt providing the best F1 coverage ever in the UK, and judging by what's said on this forum, probably the best in the world. When I see what people are saying about the likes of Speed TV, I feel that we're extremely lucky that Legard's commentary and EJ's shirts are the worst we have to complain about.

They've certainly opened up F1 more. I think the Forum has given extra time on the post race analysis, the 5live guys jump onto the next availably hospitality suite to record their podcasts.

I think X factor has been EJ. Face it, you're not going to go far down the paddock with Mark Blundell.

[UltimateDanGTR]

They've certainly opened up F1 more. I think the Forum has given extra time on the post race analysis, the 5live guys jump onto the next availably hospitality suite to record their podcasts.

I think X factor has been EJ. Face it, you're not going to go far down the paddock with Mark Blundell.

I agree, EJ is an integral part of the team. he provides alot of the humour and certainly knows everyone who is anyone in F1, which really helps when getting people to talk to.

we've slated how he presents his opinions at times and his shirts, but that does provide some some controvesy, entertainment and a good laugh.

[wedge]

The best example was last year's quali for Brazillian GP. During the red flag he managed to cajole a number of people for interviews to fill in the time. I wouldn't have bothered if it wasn't for him.

[52Paddy]

I agree, EJ is an integral part of the team. he provides alot of the humour and certainly knows everyone who is anyone in F1, which really helps when getting people to talk to.

we've slated how he presents his opinions at times and his shirts, but that does provide some some controvesy, entertainment and a good laugh.

:up: My sentiments exactly.

[Retro Formula 1]

PML. Good one Ron :laugh:

[Dave B]

Driver Tracker returns for Hockenheim :D

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/andrewbenson/2010/07/following_the_success_of_its.html

[Dave B]

Karun's certainly an F1 nerd, in the nicest possible way. :p

Telling how Ted Kravitz would rather pay £50 than give up his umbrella, it shows how much it was raining!

[wedge]

Been wondering who's the Welshman in the commentary box was! :D

[Dave B]

5Live have confirmed that Karun will be back for Friday practice in Hungary. Shame he won't be on track, but he's blummin' good value in the commentary box.

[steveaki13]

I assume that F1 practice won't be on the radio as the Cricket begins I think.

I work through the sessions and record them on the red button.
But while at work I like to listen to the Coverage on the radio.

Last week though the Australia v Pakistan match replaced it and I assume it will be the same this week.

[woody2goody]

If Chandhok wasn't an F1 driver he'd make a great commentator IMO. He seems to have an extensive knowledge of F1 history as demonstrated in the practice coverage. Himself and Brundle on race day would be excellent.. I'm still puzzled as to why Ant Davidson isn't in Legards seat also?? :)

Chandhok was brilliant in practice. His 'play-by-play' wasn't bad either along with his analysis :)

I reckon a three man booth with Ant, Brundle and David Croft would be great.

Legard can go back to the radio with Maurice Hamilton or someone like that.

[wedge]

BBC turning into ESPN by trying to generate tet a tet tittle tattle between Whitmarsh and Horner regarding the front wings :down:

McLaren never lodged a protest and know they're on the backfoot with their front wings. Why couldn't the BBC leave it as that?

[steveaki13]

Don't know whether it was just the amount going on in todays race, but I didn't seem to notice Legard's bizzaire commentary today. :p :

I normally get a bit twitchy about some of his sayings. :bigcry:

So either he is getting better :eek: or I was to enthralled by the race :bounce:

[Dave B]

I didn't give myself the chance to find out, I stuck with Ant and Crofty and they were on top form. Holly Samos was a waste of space, mind.

The F1 Forum was excellent although it was difficult to focus on anything other than EJ's trousers. The man definately dresses to the left... :erm:

By the way, a big sarcastic "thank you so much" to the serial complainers who whine to the BBC and Ofcom about anything and everything, prompting Jake to apologise about four times for Nico Hulkenberg's fruity language. Grow some balls, Beeb!

[christophulus]

Legard seemed shocked by the Red Bull's pace all race. I wonder if he bothered to watch qualifying or any of the practice sessions?

[steveaki13]

Legard seemed shocked by the Red Bull's pace all race. I wonder if he bothered to watch qualifying or any of the practice sessions?

I need to remove my post above I think because
Having said I didn't notice any problems, I told a lie, now you say that I remember thinking the same.

Has he been watching at all through the weekend.

Something along the lines of "My goodness and Vettel has taken a second off the rest on lap 3..... (Next Lap) There's another second gone.. Extra-ordinary" well it was 1.3 yesterday. :laugh:

After those first few laps though, it wasn't as bad as it has been.

[AndyL]

By the way, a big sarcastic "thank you so much" to the serial complainers who whine to the BBC and Ofcom about anything and everything, prompting Jake to apologise about four times for Nico Hulkenberg's fruity language. Grow some balls, Beeb!

I reckon he still thinks he's presenting kids' TV :) Remember earlier in the season when he apologised for Eric Boullier saying "a clean sheet".

[Daniel]

Legard really was poor this weekend..... I do hope they get rid of him soon.

[Rusty Spanner]

I reckon he still thinks he's presenting kids' TV :) Remember earlier in the season when he apologised for Eric Boullier saying "a clean sheet".

When you're in a noisy enviroment and have a producer rabbiting in your ear I'd say thats a pretty easy thing to mishear. Not to mention he was probably being defend by EJ's shirt/trousers/shoes/tan (delete as appropriate) at the time.

[inimitablestoo]

Generally I don't really notice Legard, except when he cuts across what Martin Brundle's about to say. I'd have thought 18 months into the partnership, they might have gelled a bit better.

[djparky]

Generally I don't really notice Legard, except when he cuts across what Martin Brundle's about to say. I'd have thought 18 months into the partnership, they might have gelled a bit better.

neither did I- but then I was on the 5Live commentary with the Ant and Crofty. I don't think Leggard is any worse that James Allen who would frequently spend the entire race eulogising about his beloved Schumacher

I love the BBC red button coverage of the practice sessions- I rarely get to see them live- but unless there's some sodding world cup football on I can usually see it when I get home in the evening- satisfies the F1 nerd in me

EJ goes a bit OTT at times, but it's worth it as the expressions on DC's face which are usually highly entertaining!

agree that Chandok did a fine job with his commentary- he is a motorsport nut and it shows

[CNR]

whats the go of this ?
Jake Humphrey, the programme’s regular presenter, will be at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/motorsport/formulaone/7925699/Formula-1-to-be-presented-by-female-for-first-time.html

Miss McKenzie will present the programme with former Formula One drivers Martin Brundle and David Coulthard and former team boss Eddie Jordan providing the punditry.

[Mark]

A bit strange they would send him to Delhi and not somebody else?
Perhaps he's requested it as a bit of a change?

[christophulus]

Oh yeah, Lee McKenzie. I keep forgetting she works for the BBC :s

[acescribe]

Jake goes where he is sent, and as one of the BBC's most versatile presenters I'm not surprised that he is off to the Commonwealth Games.

[wedge]

I reckon he still thinks he's presenting kids' TV :) Remember earlier in the season when he apologised for Eric Boullier saying "a clean sheet".

I does a brilliant job IMO. His presenting style probably needs a bit of refining at times but then motorsport can be a complex sport to follow.

[Mark]

He's the first presenter for a while who actually seems like he's really into what he's doing and not just there because he couldn't get the gig presenting football coverage.

EJ and DC were inspired choices too. I wasn't sure about them at first but they work really well, the fact that they are often at odds with their opinions makes it even better.

[inimitablestoo]

I does a brilliant job IMO.
Big yourself up, why don't you ;)

[Sleeper]

He's the first presenter for a while who actually seems like he's really into what he's doing and not just there because he couldn't get the gig presenting football coverage.

EJ and DC were inspired choices too. I wasn't sure about them at first but they work really well, the fact that they are often at odds with their opinions makes it even better.
I like the fact that EJ doesnt hold back when questioning the team bosses.

[woody2goody]

He's the first presenter for a while who actually seems like he's really into what he's doing and not just there because he couldn't get the gig presenting football coverage.

Well he's doing that as well -

Leeds vs Derby on Saturday :)

[Mark]

Well he's doing that as well -

Leeds vs Derby on Saturday :)

The only sleep the man gets must be on flights!

[I am evil Homer]

He's the first presenter for a while who actually seems like he's really into what he's doing and not just there because he couldn't get the gig presenting football coverage.

EJ and DC were inspired choices too. I wasn't sure about them at first but they work really well, the fact that they are often at odds with their opinions makes it even better.

Very true but it's not just pundits shouting the odds either...it's a hugely experienced and successful ex-driver and an ex-team owner so they have complementary albeit differing views on each thing.

Makes for some great viewing - the Webber crash being a fine example when EJ went off on one about the rights of smaller teams. Classic TV.

[Mark]

James Allen reckons that Humphrey is being lined up to be the anchor for the BBC coverage of the Olympics in 2012, which makes a lot of sense.

But then he goes on and implies this means he'll leave F1. The Olympics mean he'll miss, what, a single Grand Prix? Perhaps not even that as I suspect the summer break for F1 in 2012 will be timed to coincide with the Olympics.

[Bezza]

Perhaps Allen reckons he can get into the BBC to replace him? I would really hope not!

Olympics is once every 4 years, hardly a running job for a presenter!

----------------------------

Watching F1 thesedays is a world apart from pre-2009 on ITV - the improvement, the overall experience, the attention to detail, the nostalgia, the relaxed attitude, the pre-race clips, the after-race analysis, the lack of adverts (!), the commentary, the presenter, the pundits...

EVERYTHING is better now, thank God the BBC have F1, and long may it continue. My girlfriend is now into F1, we wetn to Silverstone this year, but what she enjoys most is the off-track stuff - the interviews, the banter and features.

Well done Beeb :up:

[wedge]

Watching F1 thesedays is a world apart from pre-2009 on ITV - the improvement, the overall experience, the attention to detail, the nostalgia, the relaxed attitude, the pre-race clips, the after-race analysis, the lack of adverts (!), the commentary, the presenter, the pundits...

It all went wrong in the Steve Rider era when Mark Blundell kept stating teh obvious flashing his man boobs. They really missed Tony Jardine who was opinionated.

[I am evil Homer]

Perhaps Allen reckons he can get into the BBC to replace him? I would really hope not!

Olympics is once every 4 years, hardly a running job for a presenter!


I hope not he was crap as a TV presenter. His blog is fantastic but he should stick to that.

[steveaki13]

Yer BBC's coverage is a lot better than ITV's.

I am not sure how I would/will cope when F1 moves homes again (lets hope it doesn't happen any time soon) and once more we have to miss 15 minutes of the race through breaks.

Also agree on Jake doing a good job this year.

[ShiftingGears]

Allen does behind the scenes interviews/pre-race stuff for Australian TV over here. He is good. But I was not a fan of his race commentating at all.

[Mark]

Allen is an outstanding pundit, but your right, he was never that good at commentating. On ITV he should have taken the role they had Mark Blundell for.

[AndyL]

He also did a great job as pit lane reporter for ITV before they promoted him to commentator.

[Sarah]

Jake explained what he was up to middle of last week on his twitter wanted to do CW Games - looking to Olympics.

And yes he is a football fan too - it's not difficult to find out who he supports !! Top man.

[Brown, Jon Brow]

----------------------------

Watching F1 thesedays is a world apart from pre-2009 on ITV - the improvement, the overall experience, the attention to detail, the nostalgia, the relaxed attitude, the pre-race clips, the after-race analysis, the lack of adverts (!), the commentary, the presenter, the pundits...

EVERYTHING is better now, thank God the BBC have F1, and long may it continue. My girlfriend is now into F1, we wetn to Silverstone this year, but what she enjoys most is the off-track stuff - the interviews, the banter and features.

Well done Beeb :up:

BBC seemed to have made more people interested in F1.

[Drew]

Oh dear god no, I would have to agree with that. Thanks to Allen I have to change the language on 'F1 Championship Edition' on my PS3 just so I don't have his voice lol. The Spanish option is rather good. :p :)

Is it this man? http://www.f1aldia.com/3734/antonio-lobato-saluda-a-los-lectores-de-f1-al-dia.html

He's a pain in the arse. Alonso alonso alonso ferrari ALONSO ALONSO alonso :p :

On topic, I can't complain with the coverage at all! Love the banter between them all and EJ is a real asset! I sometimes wonder about Legard, he seems to say a few odd things when under pressure, although nothing like JA. What's the general consensus? I remember people were abit unsure about him at the start of the season.

[BDunnell]

On topic, I can't complain with the coverage at all! Love the banter between them all and EJ is a real asset! I sometimes wonder about Legard, he seems to say a few odd things when under pressure, although nothing like JA. What's the general consensus? I remember people were abit unsure about him at the start of the season.

I too am generally very glad it's back on the BBC, and the quality of coverage, for the most part, is very high. Jake Humphrey comes across very well, Coulthard and Jordan make for a suitably eloquent, opinionated pairing, Lee McKenzie is professional, and when Martin Brundle tells Nigel Roebuck he's been re-energised by being on the BBC it's hard to disagree. But Jonathan Legard is still the weak spot. His commentaries are still way too verbose. I would far rather have seen Ben Edwards being hired by the BBC to do his job, for then I think we would have seen the right mixture of excitement and description.

[woody2goody]

IMO the key to the BBC coverage is that they are a lot more balanced in who they talk about over the course of a weekend.

On ITV it was Hamilton, Hamilton, Button, Hamilton, Alonso, Hamilton, Massa, Button, Hamilton :D

On BBC, I think I've seen every driver get interviewed so far, and BBC do tend to stray further from the battle at the front than ITV did.

For example I very much doubt ITV would have devoted 15 mins to talking about Petrov and Hulkenberg like BBC did during their forum last week.

[steveaki13]

Clearly a race with not enough to fill a whole hour of F1 forum, the boys are talking about elephants now.

[steveaki13]

On a serious note, if anyone gets a chance to watch the Forum on the iplayer after the race, it was quite interesting the grilling they gave the Lotus team chief. (Sorry can't remember his name)

When asked about the Lotus engine's next year, he almost gave the answer by his uncomfortable reaction.

[Sarah]

I loved Heikki's sunglasses

[djparky]

Clearly a race with not enough to fill a whole hour of F1 forum, the boys are talking about elephants now.

actually found that quite funny- thought Irvine was excellent in the forum. Have started using the R5 commentary for F1- shame to lose Brundle, but I prefer Crofty and the Ant (or Chandok) combo

I think the Beeb's coverage is excellent- much more balanced than the pro Lewis bias the ITV coverage had since 2007 or pro-Schumi prior to that. I personally don't miss James Allen's commentary- his wittering about Schumacher drove me insane- almost as bad Sky Sports nauseatingly pro Federer/Murray coverage of the US Open tennis

I also love watching the practice sessions- and the classic F1 races under the red button

[steveaki13]

actually found that quite funny- thought Irvine was excellent in the forum. Have started using the R5 commentary for F1- shame to lose Brundle, but I prefer Crofty and the Ant (or Chandok) combo

I think the Beeb's coverage is excellent- much more balanced than the pro Lewis bias the ITV coverage had since 2007 or pro-Schumi prior to that. I personally don't miss James Allen's commentary- his wittering about Schumacher drove me insane- almost as bad Sky Sports nauseatingly pro Federer/Murray coverage of the US Open tennis

I also love watching the practice sessions- and the classic F1 races under the red button

Can't argue with that.

[wedge]

Since the Flav thread is closed I found Brundle's interview hilarious! You could tell Flav was not a welcome sight and Brundle impartial journalistic instincts got the better of him!

[christophulus]

Rumours (I stress, rumours) that Legard's contract won't be renewed for next season. I sincerely hope that's the case, although I can't think of a perfect replacement off the top of my head. Charlie Cox is mentioned in the article:

http://www.planetf1.com/news/3213/6376617/-BBC-Considering-Axing-Legard-

[inimitablestoo]

Hmm. As much as I enjoy Charlie Cox's, er, unique commentary style, I think he needs a good foil, as Steve Parrish, and John Watson before him in the BTCC days, have been. Not sure Martin Brundle's laid back delivery would complement Charlie's rapid-fire approach.

David Croft, on the other hand... one of those commentators who seems to be able to strike up an instant rapport with anyone; he's had plenty of co-commentators on Five Live and during ITV4's one-season coverage of live GP2 racing (not to mention the darts...). In fact, bring Ant with him and we'll have a trio in the box - it works well enough in the practice sessions.

[steveaki13]

Rumours (I stress, rumours) that Legard's contract won't be renewed for next season. I sincerely hope that's the case, although I can't think of a perfect replacement off the top of my head. Charlie Cox is mentioned in the article:

http://www.planetf1.com/news/3213/6376617/-BBC-Considering-Axing-Legard-

Oh you could have made me sooooo happy. :)

Seriously though, I wouldn't be sad to see Legard go, and a Croft, Ant and Martin trio would be good.

[Sleeper]

The end of Legard? Lets hope so!

[wedge]

Hmm. As much as I enjoy Charlie Cox's, er, unique commentary style, I think he needs a good foil, as Steve Parrish, and John Watson before him in the BTCC days, have been. Not sure Martin Brundle's laid back delivery would complement Charlie's rapid-fire approach.

Please God no

Cox should stick to commentating on Wacky Races

[Mark]

He's perfect for touring car highlights but F1 needs a more considered approach.

[Bezza]

Charlie Cox would work with F1. Lets be honest, Murray wasn't exactly laid back was he? James Allen sounded stupid at the best of times and Legard always sounds like he is forcing himself to be excited.

I think Charlie Cox could just be the man we need to bring an exciting voice. One thing he does have is excellent timing – the ability to deliver the perfect response to an on-track incident, just like Murray used to do. Legard can’t do it, he stutters, and seemingly always says “what was going on there?!” – Allen only got excited if Schumacher won, or Hamilton won.

Cox was excellent at the BTCC and was always witty. He would let Brundle give us the analysis and technical info whilst he gets on with actually commentating on what is happening. Legard currently tries to do both, and Allen always talked about tyres.

Whichever way I look at it, his style of commentary seems perfect to accompany Brundle.

Can’t wait for 2011 then if this happens! The final piece of the jigsaw for the BBC?

[JBAFCB]

IMO the key to the BBC coverage is that they are a lot more balanced in who they talk about over the course of a weekend.

On ITV it was Hamilton, Hamilton, Button, Hamilton, Alonso, Hamilton, Massa, Button, Hamilton :D

On BBC, I think I've seen every driver get interviewed so far, and BBC do tend to stray further from the battle at the front than ITV did.

For example I very much doubt ITV would have devoted 15 mins to talking about Petrov and Hulkenberg like BBC did during their forum last week.

You right about ITV though it was more like Hamilton, Hamilton, Hamilton, Hamilton, Hamilton as a youngster racing in karts, Hamilton at 10 saying I want to be world champion, Jenson who?? Every single grand prix without fail. So glad BBC aren't so biased and personally I think they do awesome job. ITV sucked purely because they used up race days for continous ad breaks

[wedge]

Charlie Cox would work with F1. Lets be honest, Murray wasn't exactly laid back was he? James Allen sounded stupid at the best of times and Legard always sounds like he is forcing himself to be excited.

I think Charlie Cox could just be the man we need to bring an exciting voice. One thing he does have is excellent timing – the ability to deliver the perfect response to an on-track incident, just like Murray used to do. Legard can’t do it, he stutters, and seemingly always says “what was going on there?!” – Allen only got excited if Schumacher won, or Hamilton won.

Cox was excellent at the BTCC and was always witty. He would let Brundle give us the analysis and technical info whilst he gets on with actually commentating on what is happening. Legard currently tries to do both, and Allen always talked about tyres.

Whichever way I look at it, his style of commentary seems perfect to accompany Brundle.

Can’t wait for 2011 then if this happens! The final piece of the jigsaw for the BBC?

Even the MotoGP diehards prefer the Eurosport Toby & Randy than Charlie 'I don't know when to stop being silly' Cox & Stavros

[christophulus]

Legard would be fine if he just took a step back occasionally, we can all see the pictures so it isn't necessary to talk constantly. And the amount of times he cuts across Brundle mid sentence - it's like they're in different rooms or something, and he can't hear him speaking!

[wedge]

Legard would be fine if he just took a step back occasionally, we can all see the pictures so it isn't necessary to talk constantly. And the amount of times he cuts across Brundle mid sentence - it's like they're in different rooms or something, and he can't hear him speaking!

Legard was very good last weekend which I found pleasing. There was very good rapport between him and Brundle.

Still sticking with Ant & Crofty when I'm watching live

[CNR]

maybe he would do a better job
the only thing i have seen him in is the first season of Top Gear Australia

[rohanweb]

i agree with number of comments ITV was toomuch about hamilton..but now BBC is toomuch about Button button button and button .. Brundle even goes to button to ask what can he do in the 1st corner while he qualifies much lower order than Lewis... if Lewis finishes ahead there is no mention about Lewis WINS but if its other way round then ''lewis needs to learn lessons'' ''lewis under pressure from his team mate'' etc etc written by the self-confessed button presentors of BBC actually drives me mad... total BS

[Bezza]

i agree with number of comments ITV was toomuch about hamilton..but now BBC is toomuch about Button button button and button .. Brundle even goes to button to ask what can he do in the 1st corner while he qualifies much lower order than Lewis... if Lewis finishes ahead there is no mention about Lewis WINS but if its other way round then ''lewis needs to learn lessons'' ''lewis under pressure from his team mate'' etc etc written by the self-confessed button presentors of BBC actually drives me mad... total BS

Lewis doesn't do interviews on the grid. Hence why you think Button is focused on more.

[AndyL]

Even the MotoGP diehards prefer the Eurosport Toby & Randy than Charlie 'I don't know when to stop being silly' Cox & Stavros

Especially the MotoGP diehards. I think the BBC presentation might be more populist, but if you already know what a highside is, then it's got to be Toby & Julian.

Toby Moody to replace Legard? ;)

[inimitablestoo]

There is a lot of focus on Button, naturally. They even ask you to press a red one after the race.

[UltimateDanGTR]

There is a lot of focus on Button, naturally. They even ask you to press a red one after the race.

well we can't really press a red webber can we :p :

[inimitablestoo]

Just a good job Panis isn't still in F1. One slip of the tongue and... :p :

[Saint Devote]

I have to say that last night-morning I thought I would watch a race from a a series I had not for some time. HOW LUCKY WE ARE IN F1!

The Motegi Indycar race was a torturous viewing of mindnumbing boredom. The cars all look the same, there are no teams capable really of running in the top six than Penske or Ganassi and the yelow flag laps, ad breaks and amateurish commentary on Versus was remarkable. Not to forget that the pit stops provided most of the overtaking albeit once the "racing" got underway it reverted back to the usual boring procession.

In particular - and my second language is English - was the dreadful diction and incorrect use of words by the ex-driver Robbie Buhl. Ye gods - how do they allow such people that "are talkin' real good" on tv??!

Next time I want to complain about the idiot that does the Speed pre-race show, Will Buxton, I will just think back to the Indycar experience last night and be ever so happy with f1.

I have no idea how the IRL are going to improve their show - openwheel racing inhabited by drivers that could not make it in European racing is jusst not on.

[D28]

I have to say that last night-morning I thought I would watch a race from a a series I had not for some time. HOW LUCKY WE ARE IN F1!

I agree. I occasionally check the IRL races. I find them unwatchable, just endless yellows and commercials, inane commentary, mixed in with a few laps of racing.
The F1 feed I get is the BBC, though without any pre-race coverage.

There is simply no comparison, the F1 coverage leaves very little to complain about. I actualy like the fact that the coverage starts right at the parade lap, and is easily covered by 2 hours. This make taping very simple.

[Dave B]

We had to suffer TV commentary for much of the race, and it's clear that once again Legard was totally and utterly out of his depth. He just sounded confused half the time, had no rapport with Martin, and even at the end when Heikki's Lotus was on fire he sounded asleep.

[Ranger]

Their biggest problem is that Legard/Brundle have no chemistry.

[steveaki13]

Their biggest problem is that Legard/Brundle have no chemistry.

Agreed

Even though I was not a great fan of Jimmy Allen, he and Brundle did get on well and he did sound excited when something happened. Unlike Legard who doesn't get excited by anything.

[Dave B]

Hopefully some good news: during the post-race forum Bernie indicated (although not promised) that F1 will be in HD in 2011. :up:

[Mark]

BBC are going to town a bit on the dramatic inserts about how close the championship is. :s

[steveaki13]

BBC are going to town a bit on the dramatic inserts about how close the championship is. :s


:D
I thought that. I think Jake commented on how close the title was about 15 times before the race and then about 20 after it. :p

[Duchess]

While I love the BBC coverage of the races, I just don't like how dull Legard can sound. Martin Brundle is hilarious on his own but he's doubly more fun when he's got someone that can work with his enthusiasm. Ant & Crofty (& Chandhok) are never a bad choice, but when it comes to streaming live I tend to search out the Rai Sport streams because nothing beats the insane enthusiasm of an Italian F1 announcer. :laugh:

Afterwards I always cut back to BBC for the pre and post-race dialogues. They're well edited and amusing, not only for EJ's alleged fashion sense.

[Ari]

well we can't really press a red webber can we :p :

Hamilton did, and look where it got him! :p

[UltimateDanGTR]

Hamilton did, and look where it got him! :p

exactly.

[steveaki13]

It must have been a nightmare for Lee McKenzie today.

The first F1 coverage she has hosted live and there is no action and they have to fill a couple of hours.

I think she did a good job.

In at the deep end (literally) and she survived.

[Dave B]

She did alright, didn't she? Must have been a nightmare.

In case anybody didn't see it on the other thread:



Qualifying at 10am local time Sunday with BBC coverage starting at 1.50am BST. Race coverage as before - from 0600, with race at 0700

[christophulus]

I thought she did a great job. It's a shame she doesn't get more airtime usually.

[AndyL]

Sound problems mean we get the Ant/Crofty radio commentary for just long enough to underline how poor Legard is... at least we got to hear Crofty describing Kobayashi shouting "Leroy Jenkins" as he passed Heidfeld :laugh:

[SkyTom]

When the BBC One comms went down then and we got 5live, that just showed how poor Legard is in comparison to David Croft. Really amusing.

[steveaki13]

Yer as stupid as I may have been, I have always stuck to BBC 1 commentary during the races but that small section of 5live has given me a realisation of how poor Legard is. I always thought he was poor per say, but hearing the upbeat commentary from Ant & Crofty over the Kobi pass was different class.

From now on I will change to 5live Comm, for the race.

[GOODSPEED]

Yer as stupid as I may have been, I have always stuck to BBC 1 commentary during the races but that small section of 5live has given me a realisation of how poor Legard is. I always thought he was poor per say, but hearing the upbeat commentary from Ant & Crofty over the Kobi pass was different class.

From now on I will change to 5live Comm, for the race.

There again, when you listen to Charlie Cocks and Steve Parish 'guessing' and generally being dickheads whilst a MotoGP race is going on, you can quite easily put up with Legard.
I say Crofty to F1 and Toby Moody/ Julian Ryder to BBC Moto GP commentary.

[DazzlaF1]

Yer as stupid as I may have been, I have always stuck to BBC 1 commentary during the races but that small section of 5live has given me a realisation of how poor Legard is. I always thought he was poor per say, but hearing the upbeat commentary from Ant & Crofty over the Kobi pass was different class.

From now on I will change to 5live Comm, for the race.

I watch all the races with 5live commentary anyway so didnt make any difference to me.

And kudos to Lee McKenzie, I thought she did a grand job, it did look weird at first but after it all you'd be thinking "Jake who?"

[AndyL]

And kudos to Lee McKenzie, I thought she did a grand job, it did look weird at first but after it all you'd be thinking "Jake who?"

Unfortunately she blotted her copybook at the end of the F1 Forum by revealing the result of the MotoGP race - but very good apart from that!

[Bruce D]

There again, when you listen to Charlie Cocks and Steve Parish 'guessing' and generally being dickheads whilst a MotoGP race is going on, you can quite easily put up with Legard.
I say Crofty to F1 and Toby Moody/ Julian Ryder to BBC Moto GP commentary.

Odd that as Cox and Parish were good at Superbikes, but then again Cox was brilliant at BTCC commentary. I vote for the Moody/Ryder combo for MotoGP, rather than that "and a half laps" Harris moron. I stopped watching MotoGP in 2000 cos of him and I've never gone back since.

[Dave B]

Cox is funny in small doses or for a highlights show, but he'd do your head in commentating on a full F1 race.

[shazbot]

Any of you guys complaining about BBC coverage should try Speed TV! If you want to simulate it then try turning off the TV for 3 - 4 mins every 2 or 3 laps - no exageration - to simulate the add breaks. To make it even more interesting try to time this with something exciting about to happen. Speed TVs dismal coverage is only made worse by the same adds over and over. The commentary team do there best though. I don't know if the UK had the same tv feed as the US but the first half of the race we spent watching the Japanese drivers ignoring the front runners. Fortunately Kobayashi provided some excitement, but Yamamoto!

[Dave B]

Any of you guys complaining about BBC coverage should try Speed TV! No thanks, I've seen some of it on YouTube!

Speaking personally, I'm not complaining about the BBC but occasionally offering some consructive criticism of the few areas where they could improve otherwise excellent coverage. It's night and day better than what we used to have with ITV.

[AndyL]

Any of you guys complaining about BBC coverage should try Speed TV! If you want to simulate it then try turning off the TV for 3 - 4 mins every 2 or 3 laps - no exageration - to simulate the add breaks. To make it even more interesting try to time this with something exciting about to happen. Speed TVs dismal coverage is only made worse by the same adds over and over. The commentary team do there best though. I don't know if the UK had the same tv feed as the US but the first half of the race we spent watching the Japanese drivers ignoring the front runners. Fortunately Kobayashi provided some excitement, but Yamamoto!

Point taken! I'm very happy that the worst we have to complain about is that of the two commentaries we have a choice between, one of them's rather mediocre :)

[Nikki Katz]

When the BBC One comms went down then and we got 5live, that just showed how poor Legard is in comparison to David Croft. Really amusing.
I thought that too. It almost seems like Legard's bringing down Brundle too. I almost fell asleep during that race until the technical difficulties happened.

They really need to reconsider Legard for next season.

[52Paddy]

Living in Ireland, I don't get 5Live coverage. Though I would be interested to hear snippets of Ant and Crofty's take on commentating.

Charlie Cox can be a bit of a headfull indeed. Ben Edwards would be the perfect man for the job. If not him, I'd be content with giving James Allen another go.

[52Paddy]

Living in Ireland, I don't get 5Live coverage. Though I would be interested to hear snippets of Ant and Crofty's take on commentating.

Charlie Cox can be a bit of a headfull indeed. Ben Edwards would be the perfect man for the job. If not him, I'd be content with giving James Allen another go.

[Easy Drifter]

With Canada getting BBC coverage when the sound went down we just had a picture. At first not even car sounds and then for a while the cars but no commentary. Didn't really miss the commentarty.
When TSN here goes to commercial we get side by side but the less than half size picture is very hard to follow. I have a 32 inch screen. Our commercials run for close to 5 minutes it seems.
TSN start coverage 5 minutes before the start so we get no pre race show and they often cut the post race show sometimes literally in mid word. To-night they went to stick and ball talking heads as soon as the interviews were over.
Qualifying was shown on TSN2 which I do not get.
When qualifying was originally scheduled they just showed a taped boxing show with no explanation of the cancellation.
Thanks to the internet I was expecting it.
Speed coverage is blacked out in Canada.

[DazzlaF1]

Living in Ireland, I don't get 5Live coverage. Though I would be interested to hear snippets of Ant and Crofty's take on commentating.

Ask and you shall recieve :beer: A direct comparison someone posted after qualifying in Turkey

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikasr6UkqY8

[christophulus]

at least we got to hear Crofty describing Kobayashi shouting "Leroy Jenkins" as he passed Heidfeld :laugh:

Yeah, I should probably start listening to the 5 live commentary from now on :D

There were quite a few technical problems today - water in the electrics perhaps?

[Bruce D]

Ben Edwards would be the perfect man for the job. If not him, I'd be content with giving James Allen another go.

Ah yes, Ben is very good, I enjoyed his A1 commentary and also his BTCC now. He's done the F1 review DVDs for a number of years now so his foot is in the door, but then again how tight is his ITV contract? They allowed him to go to Sky for the A1 but would they let him go to BBC?

Ben and Martin Brundle together would make an excellent team but you need guys who can keep you entertained while you watch the procession. The best guys I ever heard on that regard were Keith Heuwen (spell? - what ever happened to this guy?) and Julian Ryder back in the late 90s for MotoGP and Superbikes.

As for James, well, er no thanks... He tried too much to be Murray.

[wedge]

Cox is funny in small doses or for a highlights show, but he'd do your head in commentating on a full F1 race.

Only time I would tolerate Cox in F1 would be for the F1 reviews a la Clive James

[52Paddy]

Ask and you shall recieve :beer: A direct comparison someone posted after qualifying in Turkey

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikasr6UkqY8

Tasty stuff! They make even the most processional moments entertaining.

[52Paddy]

As for James, well, er no thanks... He tried too much to be Murray.

True, but at least he knew what he was talking about.

[Bezza]

I'd give Cox a try, his use of metaphor and off the cuff style would work for F1. Rather than Legard who just reacts to everything by saying "what happened there?!??!" You tell me, Jonathan, your the bloody commentator!

Ben Edwards I'm not a huge fan, too dull. James Allen - can't beleive someone said he is worth another go??! He had 8 years to get it right and was crap! It is only because Legard is so bad that it is even being suggested.

Give Charlie Cox a go. If he can rekindle the BTCC commentaries he used to do, then that would be fantastic.

[ShiftingGears]

Legard needs to go. He does not engage the casual viewer, and he is pretty inept at accurately describing anything that isn't bleedingly obvious. How hard is it to find some guy who can bounce off Brundle who can read what is happening on the track competently?




On a side note, I must applaud Channel Seven for their V8 Supercar coverage, where they regularly have Neil Crompton, Matt White and Mark Skaife as commentators with Mark Larkham being the official technical guy.

Neil Crompton and Mark Skaife are in my mind, some of the best commentators of any sport in the world right now. They have chemistry, they're engaging, informative, insightful and don't treat you like an idiot when explaining the finer aspects of racing.

[wedge]

Legard needs to go. He does not engage the casual viewer, and he is pretty inept at accurately describing anything that isn't bleedingly obvious. How hard is it to find some guy who can bounce off Brundle who can read what is happening on the track competently?




On a side note, I must applaud Channel Seven for their V8 Supercar coverage, where they regularly have Neil Crompton, Matt White and Mark Skaife as commentators with Mark Larkham being the official technical guy.

Neil Crompton and Mark Skaife are in my mind, some of the best commentators of any sport in the world right now. They have chemistry, they're engaging, informative, insightful and don't treat you like an idiot when explaining the finer aspects of racing.

There's something which I don't like about Crompton - not all the time but certain occassion there's a sense of arrogance that he's the be all and end all with regards to racing in V8SC. Skaifey definitely senses something similar because he enjoys ripping into Crompo and you can tell that there are times when Crompo sounds a bit upset at Skaifey's retort.

But on the whole its mostly in good jest and great fun to listen to.

Still miss Leigh Diffy though

[inimitablestoo]

Still, I think we're all agreed that was Legard's best Saturday of the season so far ;)

[52Paddy]

James Allen - can't beleive someone said he is worth another go??! He had 8 years to get it right and was crap! It is only because Legard is so bad that it is even being suggested.

Exactly ;)

[philipbain]

Only time I would tolerate Cox in F1 would be for the F1 reviews a la Clive James

I don't know if Cox could ever be as good as Clive James, his commentaries are the reason why I am very knowledgeable about the '82, '84 and '86 seasons as he did the narration, injected it with a mix of insight, whit and comment. I remember the 2000 review being done by a bloke that sounded like Barry Scott off the Cillit Bang advert!

[UltimateDanGTR]

I remember the 2000 review being done by a bloke that sounded like Barry Scott off the Cillit Bang advert!

I found that review particularly humurous just listening to that annoying bloke, wheoever he may be....

I guess he is the same guy as the person who does Inside Grand Prix too.

[SGWilko]

I don't know if Cox could ever be as good as Clive James, his commentaries are the reason why I am very knowledgeable about the '82, '84 and '86 seasons as he did the narration, injected it with a mix of insight, whit and comment. I remember the 2000 review being done by a bloke that sounded like Barry Scott off the Cillit Bang advert!

BANG, and the dirt is gone!

Although it isn't quite that easy........

[Mark]

I don't know if Cox could ever be as good as Clive James, his commentaries are the reason why I am very knowledgeable about the '82, '84 and '86 seasons as he did the narration, injected it with a mix of insight, whit and comment. I remember the 2000 review being done by a bloke that sounded like Barry Scott off the Cillit Bang advert!

Most of my knowledge of Formula 1 before 1993 comes from a friend in my University days loaning me all of the highlights videos from something like 1979 up to the present day.

The quality of them is variable to say the least, but I did enjoy the Clive James ones "The race for the Big Prize, never stops!"

[gloomyDAY]

5 Live commentary came on during the race. Did anyone else notice? The picture went blank, then I heard Croft keeping tabs on Kobayashi and Davidson pulling some funny one-liners. Unfortunately, the commentary went back to Legard and it almost put me to sleep. Kobayashi made veterans look like the Cabbage Patch Kids and Legard still sucked at commentating.

[acescribe]

5 Live commentary came on during the race. Did anyone else notice? The picture went blank, then I heard Croft keeping tabs on Kobayashi and Davidson pulling some funny one-liners. Unfortunately, the commentary went back to Legard and it almost put me to sleep. Kobayashi made veterans look like the Cabbage Patch Kids and Legard still sucked at commentating.

It is mentioned further up this thread.

Legard could have already had his future told by the BBC and a satellite glitch, water in the works or whatever it was could have sealed his fate. There are several possible replacements who could and would do a better job!

[Dave B]

All conjecture, but there are some interesting tweets from Ben Costanduros (@BenConsty (http://twitter.com/#!/BenConsty) ) today:


STILL loads of speculation about commentators for 2011 in BBC. Interestingly ITV are desperate to get THIER 2011 team signed for BTCC...


I would have Crofty and Ant (not sure he wants the Coms label) or Ben E and Johnny H. My hunch is we will see a full change for diff reasons


i know nothing except ITV are keen to sign up people for 2011.... could mean we dont get Ben cos he is tied to ITV....who knows

[Dave B]

A sterling job from the BBC today, staying with the coverage for nearly 6 hours in total if you include the forum.

But what was the deal with DC being at the McLaren Technlogy Centre? Interesting though it was to see behind the scenes, they weren't allowed to show anything remotely interesting while any sessions were in progress, and they buddied DC with the most humourless employee they could find who wasn't willing to say much at all on camera. Pretty pointless, in my opinion.

What was Legard like today? I had Crofty and Paffett, and they were on top form. Poor sods had a sore throat by the end of the race!

[djparky]

A sterling job from the BBC today, staying with the coverage for nearly 6 hours in total if you include the forum.

But what was the deal with DC being at the McLaren Technlogy Centre? Interesting though it was to see behind the scenes, they weren't allowed to show anything remotely interesting while any sessions were in progress, and they buddied DC with the most humourless employee they could find who wasn't willing to say much at all on camera. Pretty pointless, in my opinion.

What was Legard like today? I had Crofty and Paffett, and they were on top form. Poor sods had a sore throat by the end of the race!

agreed as usual excellent coverage- sadly I missed the forum after the race. Legard was terrible today- several thousand miles away watching the TV I had a better idea of what was going on than he seemed to- they seemed late picking up on place changes- yet they must be seeing the same footage that I do. I switched to Crofty and Paffett and that was much better.

[TMorel]

yet they must be seeing the same footage that I do

Interesting comment from Brundle a few races back when he said that yes they get the same feeds but his monitor was so tiny he couldn't make something out that was clear as day on the 19" TV my mum had in her kitchen (I'd been banished in there as she gets even stroppier than I do when her favourite Britney isn't doing well)

Who provides the commentary booth equipment, the track or aunty as the five live boys appear to have better technology to use.

[Daniel]

agreed as usual excellent coverage- sadly I missed the forum after the race. Legard was terrible today- several thousand miles away watching the TV I had a better idea of what was going on than he seemed to- they seemed late picking up on place changes- yet they must be seeing the same footage that I do. I switched to Crofty and Paffett and that was much better.
Ditto. He was rubbish. When Webber took Rosberg out and Rosberg was walking into the paddock Leggard completely got his name wrong, he said it was Button or Hamilton or someone else :crazy:

[Dave B]

I saw a little bit of the midday replay. Legard commentated on Rosberg overtaking Hamilton, then a lap or so later suddenly announced "Rosberg's got past Hamilton somehow". Yes, we know, you mentioned it earlier, idiot. Don't you remember?

[Daniel]

I saw a little bit of the midday replay. Legard commentated on Rosberg overtaking Hamilton, then a lap or so later suddenly announced "Rosberg's got past Hamilton somehow". Yes, we know, you mentioned it earlier, idiot. Don't you remember?
Then there was the time he said that a driver had STOPPED!!!!!! And because he wasn't talking about what we could see on the screen you had NO fricking idea whether their engine had blown up, their gearbox had packed it in or whether they were just making a routing pitstop. It was a routing piststop but for a good few seconds I had no idea wtf was going on.

He just has an annoying habit of words that have double meanings and he also places too much emphasis on some words as well which makes you think that something exciting is happening when it's just business as usual.

[christophulus]

Today sealed it for me - they've got to get rid of Legard next year. Absolutely hopeless, I could keep track of what's going on better than him.

[UltimateDanGTR]

Today sealed it for me - they've got to get rid of Legard next year. Absolutely hopeless, I could keep track of what's going on better than him.

you were not the only one.

no Jonathon, that's not Button, that's Lewis. Massa has just passed Lewis, and Jenson is further back. etc.

[Josti]

It's frustrating to listen to Legard, almost made we switch to Dutch broadcast with commercials!

Also, McLarens 'Mission Control' (sounds like a 90's eurodance pop group) feature was pointless, but at least they've tried. It also made me think how F1 is wasting a lot of money on more or less unnecessary things, I mean do they really need 15 people (or more) in that room?

[MrJan]

I found it interesting to see the kind of set up that McLaren have away from the usual stuff that we see, I hadn't realised quite what a large operation each race was.

And yes Legard was extra rubbish today, he really didn't have much of a clue about what was happening.

[Drew]

I think Legard's clearly taken all the criticism onboard. He was sounding over enthusiastic when some of the backmarkers crashed and he was trying to overegg Petrov's crash (I'm sorry, it was not that big).

The only problem is, it's just not natural for him. I hope somebody new comes in for next year

[Rollo]

When you lot had to do the big switch from BBC One to Two, what would have been on BBC One that was so important that it simply couldn't be shifted?

[Nikki Katz]

When you lot had to do the big switch from BBC One to Two, what would have been on BBC One that was so important that it simply couldn't be shifted?
Andrew Marr!

I taped the race and didn't realise it had switched until my recording turned off 15 laps before the end. Had to watch the replay instead. I like that in the second broadcast that all the bits about switching channels were simply cut out, and replaced by two minutes of silence :)

[wedge]

I saw a little bit of the midday replay. Legard commentated on Rosberg overtaking Hamilton, then a lap or so later suddenly announced "Rosberg's got past Hamilton somehow". Yes, we know, you mentioned it earlier, idiot. Don't you remember?

Well, if it was Muzza others would've let him off the hook and have a good chuckle.


I think Legard's clearly taken all the criticism onboard. He was sounding over enthusiastic when some of the backmarkers crashed and he was trying to overegg Petrov's crash (I'm sorry, it was not that big).

The only problem is, it's just not natural for him. I hope somebody new comes in for next year

The problem is that his idea of enthusiasm is to shout down the microphone like a mentalist.

[Dave B]

Just a reminder: Brazil and Abu Dhabi will be shown on BBC One HD, the Beeb's new HD channel. It will of course only be upscaled but you may notice a slightly better picture.

[MrJan]

I must admit that I'm baffled by your love affair with HD, Dave. Is it really that much better, I've never had any issue with normal telly.

[Dave B]

It can be, a lot depends on the source material and production techniques. Wonders of the Solar System was simply staggering, WTCC coverage embarrasses F1, and there are many examples.

When you see it done properly you'll never want to go back to SD.

[djparky]

Just a reminder: Brazil and Abu Dhabi will be shown on BBC One HD, the Beeb's new HD channel. It will of course only be upscaled but you may notice a slightly better picture.

On HD??? excellent- even if it's only upscaled that will be a start. WTCC, DTM, NASCAR and GT's are all shown in HD yet the biggest of them all isn't!

[Dave B]

Was anybody here really that inconvenienced by the switch to BBC2?


The BBC has received nearly 300 complaints from viewers after it switched live coverage of yesterday's Korean Formula One grand prix from BBC1 to BBC2 after the race was delayed because of rain.

Coverage of the grand prix was due to run on BBC1 from 6am to 9.15am, when The Andrew Marr Show was scheduled to begin.

The politics show was put back by 15 minutes to 9.30am, but the grand prix had still not finished and the live coverage was switched to BBC2 for another hour. Unfortunately for the BBC, that was when many of the most exciting incidents took place. As a result some 273 complained to the BBC.



http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/oct/25/bbc-korea-formula-one-grand-prix

[Retro Formula 1]

Was anybody here really that inconvenienced by the switch to BBC2?




http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/oct/25/bbc-korea-formula-one-grand-prix

Actually, me.

I was watching the GP and had to pause it to drop my partner off at the train station as she was running in the Great South Run. When I got back, I found that it was just about to switch over but with a huge time slip. I missed Vettel breaking down but caught the last couple of laps.

Not complaining though as it was my fault I wasn't there so I can't blame anyone else. That's the problem these days, too many people blaming everyone else when they cannot take personal responsibility.

Still, I suppose it's easier to complain :(

[ArrowsFA1]

Was anybody here really that inconvenienced by the switch to BBC2?
Nope. Was watching on the red button (listening to 5Live commentary as always) so got uninterrupted coverage.

That's the problem these days, too many people blaming everyone else when they cannot take personal responsibility.

Still, I suppose it's easier to complain :(
:up: In a nutshell

I suppose those 273 people may have an old tv without a remote, which might make it very difficult to change channels :p :

[MrJan]

Just a bunch of people who sky+ed it and then get narked. If you can't be arsed to get up/go out then you've only really got yourself to blame. The Beeb can't control the weather or the race and I'd imagine that viewers of the AM Show are far more likely to complain than F1 fans.

People are stupid.

[inimitablestoo]

I couldn't be arsed to get up but could be arsed to skip through the delay after the red flag, so ended up catching the rest of the race live ;)

The only thing about the switch from BBC1 to BBC2 was that I took a moment to look at the remote control, for a TV bought back when analogue was all we had, and realised just how faded the numbers 1 to 4 are (less so 5 ;) )

[Mark]

Qualifying is now on BBC1 HD which I assume is not proper HD?

[Dave B]

Upscaled, and not particularly great. Also about 3 seconds behind SD which will be a nightmare for synchronising with onboard and driver tracker.

[steveaki13]

Another race that Legard and Brundle appeared a fair bit behind me to spot things happening in the race.

I assumed that the Mclaren's pitted late as a final gamble to be able to catch the cars ahead on fresher tyres, that was the way I red it, but maybe I was wrong but the commentary pair didn't seem to even twig that maybe the idea until 3 or 4 laps later.

As it turned out it didn't work because of all the backmarkers.

I know its probably harder while in the commentary box, but they have observers and more knowledge (So they say) than us, but still seem so slow to pick up on ideas and battles.

[Daniel]

Legard was horrible today. Truly horrible

[christophulus]

Legard was horrible today. Truly horrible

Hopefully his P45 is on the way...

[steveaki13]

Hopefully his P45 is on the way...


If the rumours are true we may only have one more race of the guy. :bounce: :dog:

[Dave B]

I sacrificed the dubious benefit of upscaled HD to have Crofty and Ant on the red button. Ant actually annoyed me a little bit today for being a one-man Alonso fanclub, but other than that they were fine.

Post-race forum is a bit chaotic, EJ's been let loose with a mic and all hell's breaking loose.

[steveaki13]

Post-race forum is a bit chaotic, EJ's been let loose with a mic and all hell's breaking loose.

Asking the Red Bull Mechanics about Golf :dozey: :rolleyes:

[steveaki13]

As you said it's complete chaos Mark Webber spraying a fire extinguisher at everyone.

Good Fun

[Dave B]

As you said it's complete chaos Mark Webber spraying a fire extinguisher at everyone.

Good Fun
Good fun indeed. Proof that when the media stop stirring about team orders, there's actually a good deal of harmony in the team. :up:

[Drew]

Well now I've seen RTL's coverage (german tv) of F1, I have to say I missed BBC! I didn't get to see the run up but the commentators were very good, balanced and clearly enthusiastic. I saw the post race coverage and well, it wasn't great, I missed the forum! German Jake didn't seem that interested, scanning the pit lane and Niki Lauda was being awkward answering his questions. I think Sky Deutschland also cover it, but I was quite dissapointed with the coverage! I've seen both Spanish and Italian broadcasts of F1 too and I have to say the BBC beats all 3 of them by miles. So don't complain, you lot are spoiled! ;)

[wattoroos]

it annoys that when you watch qualy they pick up whether the driver is faster or not but in the race, you see something happen and then a lap later they will finally realise that and say i wonder when that happened.
though i do like brundle knows what he is talking about and doesnt say the same stuff every race like legard and his "this is crucial" and "is it gonna be fast enough..."

[Bruce D]

I don't know, they still missed everything in quali. I had the TV on and my mobile on the live timing and I could see Hulkenberg lighting up the purple sectors and he was about to cross the line before they mentioned he was "on a quick one". I knew he was on a quick one 30sec before they did. It was obvious that the drying track was going to change times rapidly so why weren't they watching the sectors like I was?

I hope it is true that we only have 1 more race with Legard, cos he's bringing Brundle down now too.

[52Paddy]

Legard was horrible today. Truly horrible

Absolutely.

[52Paddy]

Mind you, we're lucky that this season has provided a lot of entertainment. If it was a season akin to 2002 or 2004 [processional], imagine what we would have to contend with [ala Legard] :eek:

[Dave Stubbings]

The thing that annoys me most about Legard is where he hurriedly crams in a review of a drivers' weekend/season when they cross the finishing line to win a race. It really irritates me.

[MrMetro]

I'm I the only person who thinks Legard is a massive Alonso fan? When Alonso took provisional pole at Germany, Legard when nuts and raised his voice and said 'BEAT THAT'

[greencroft]

Look on the BBC iPlayer coverage of the post race F1 Forum:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00w5qz4/Formula_1_2010_The_Brazilian_Grand_Prix_Forum/

Just after 12mins when the BBC threesome walk into the Red Bull garage, notice the strange inventory of spare parts on the top shelf behind them.

I guess Red Bull were planning a party!

[Dave B]

Vettel let slip yesterday that Holly Samos is leaving Five Live.

I wonder if there'll be other changes to the BBC's lineup ;)

[wedge]

Well now I've seen RTL's coverage (german tv) of F1, I have to say I missed BBC! I didn't get to see the run up but the commentators were very good, balanced and clearly enthusiastic. I saw the post race coverage and well, it wasn't great, I missed the forum! German Jake didn't seem that interested, scanning the pit lane and Niki Lauda was being awkward answering his questions. I think Sky Deutschland also cover it, but I was quite dissapointed with the coverage! I've seen both Spanish and Italian broadcasts of F1 too and I have to say the BBC beats all 3 of them by miles. So don't complain, you lot are spoiled! ;)

No, it is our brothers in Germany who are spoiled!

Nazan Eckes = hubba! hubba!

http://www.9sn.net/resim/Nazan-Eckes.jpg

[ArrowsFA1]

I wonder if there'll be other changes to the BBC's lineup ;)

Lovely to share the commentary with so many racing drivers today. Thanks to Ant and Karun and to Martin Brundle who genuinely popped in.....
http://twitter.com/CroftyF1/status/3098185513828352

"...genuinely popped in.." or the BBC seeing how they'd work together ;)

[Dave B]

They worked together very well, I'd say :D

[AndyL]

:D
OK, so who would we like them to get in to cover the Friday practices, when Crofty moves up to the main job?

[steveaki13]

http://twitter.com/CroftyF1/status/3098185513828352

"...genuinely popped in.." or the BBC seeing how they'd work together ;)

;)

I was listening on the radio and I thought the same.

A broken handle on the TV commentary box the OFFICIAL REASON.

Yer Right

[steveaki13]

It seemed in Quali that Brundle (and Legard to a point) were making a real effort to lift their excitment levels, maybe to prove to the BBC he is still into it.

if a new commentator comes in next year maybe Brundle wants to start refreshed as for me today he seemed far more chirpy than recent races.

Maybe the spell in the 5live box on Friday gave him a new lease of life.

Here's hoping.

[steveaki13]

No, it is our brothers in Germany who are spoiled!

Nazan Eckes = hubba! hubba!

http://www.9sn.net/resim/Nazan-Eckes.jpg

I might have to look into moving to Germany. Me thinks :dog:

[wedge]

It seemed in Quali that Brundle (and Legard to a point) were making a real effort to lift their excitment levels, maybe to prove to the BBC he is still into it.

Dunno what drugs you took but Q3 was thrilling right down to the final laps.

[steveaki13]

Dunno what drugs you took but Q3 was thrilling right down to the final laps.

Yer I know I agree, but before even in exciting moments Legard and Brundle this year have seemed a less than pumped up and I thought yesterday they finally reacted as the action demanded. :)

[DazzlaF1]

Eddie Jordan trying to get hold of Vettel :laugh:

[Dave B]

Eddie Jordan trying to get hold of Vettel :laugh:
Fair play to him though, he got well and truly stuck into that throng of photographers and succeeded in getting his man.

EJ's not always been my cup of tea, but there's no doubt that he's worth his weight in gold sometimes.

I have nothing but genuine admiration for the BBC's coverage this year. The few minor gripes pale into insignificance when you consider the quality and quantity of the service they provide.

[steveaki13]

Eddie Jordan trying to get hold of Vettel :laugh:

I am sure when he came out of the scrum I lip red him say. "F*** that" on camera :p

[DazzlaF1]

Fair play to him though, he got well and truly stuck into that throng of photographers and succeeded in getting his man.

EJ's not always been my cup of tea, but there's no doubt that he's worth his weight in gold sometimes.

I have nothing but genuine admiration for the BBC's coverage this year. The few minor gripes pale into insignificance when you consider the quality and quantity of the service they provide.

I know, whoever came up with the idea last year of the post race forum is a genius.

Yes some of us have gripes with Legard but like you say, the massive content of the service they provide shows they are really thinking about the fans and it more than makes up for any of the flaws. Plus not only the weekend coverage but also the website and the pre-race weekend build up of showing highlights of classic F1 races.

We really are spoilt as fans in the UK.

[Daniel]

Fair play to him though, he got well and truly stuck into that throng of photographers and succeeded in getting his man.

EJ's not always been my cup of tea, but there's no doubt that he's worth his weight in gold sometimes.

I have nothing but genuine admiration for the BBC's coverage this year. The few minor gripes pale into insignificance when you consider the quality and quantity of the service they provide.


BBC coverage - Leggard = Perfect

Sometimes Eddie can be cringeworthy but he creates a lot of opportunities for conversation and he's definitely balanced out by Coulthard :)

[VkmSpouge]

I think the BBC coverage has been excellent throughout the season, I hope they keep it up in 2011.

[christophulus]

I think the BBC coverage has been excellent throughout the season, I hope they keep it up in 2011.

Brilliant all year, I can't remember how I coped with ITV!

Now drop Legard and push FOM to film in HD, and we'll be close to perfection :)

[go mads]

anyone know who sings the song on the final credits?

[DazzlaF1]

anyone know who sings the song on the final credits?

Sounded like Take That I think

[go mads]

i might be wrong but i dont think so!

[Dave B]

Sounded like Take That I think
Nah, it was quite good :p

T'was Just Drive by Alistair Griffin.

http://www.alistairgriffin.net/

[Mark]

Another great year from the BBC and shows us just how poor ITV really were!
Agreed that the F1 forum is great although it is just extended post race coverage it's very much appreciated.
Well worth the licence fee alone!

[steveaki13]

Another great year from the BBC and shows us just how poor ITV really were!
Agreed that the F1 forum is great although it is just extended post race coverage it's very much appreciated.
Well worth the licence fee alone!


Yep As all have said above the Beeb has gone one step better than last year I think and has been brilliant.

Personally just Legard eased out and 2011 could be 100% perfect.

Lets wait and see.

[Dave B]

I'm not even that fussed about Legard, as I understand that many people like him. All the time there's a red button alternative I'm happy. At least we have a choice, unlike the James Allen era.

[christophulus]

Nah, it was quite good :p

T'was Just Drive by Alistair Griffin.

http://www.alistairgriffin.net/

Huh, I thought it was Take That too :s

[DazzlaF1]

Here's the F1 Forum again if you want to see EJ scramble to get Vettel out of that melee at the end

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00wcv8f/Formula_1_2010_The_Abu_Dhabi_Grand_Prix_Forum/

[Duchess]

This year's BBC coverage has been absolutely astounding, I can't imagine watching the race on any other channel. Jake, DC and EJ make each race hilariously memorable and I love how fan-oriented it all is. The post-race forum is probably the best F1 coverage idea yet!

Overall, the Beebs coverage has helped in letting me enjoy this season so much. If I could pay the license fee, I would without question just for the F1 coverage...I feel terrible that I have to use "alternative means" to view their races. :(

[tmx]

I would like the person in control of what images are shown during the race to be replaced. I don't exactly how they control the images, but many times I wonder who ever in charged isn't aware of the situation of the race and missed to concentrate on the most exciting moments and cover less important things, they eventually gets it but late to scene. They have improved a lot lately, but there are still 'drifting off' moments. Also they are late to pick up incidents.

Sometimes Brundle had to openly ask to change camera. In 2009 they spent 45 minutes covering Alguersuari in Singapore and nothing else. I don't know what team radio they have access to, but they often play unimportant ones like Sebastian's engineer willing him on, multiple times throughout Abu Dhabi.

[Mark]

I would like the person in control of what images are shown during the race to be replaced. I don't exactly how they control the images, but many times I wonder who ever in charged isn't aware of the situation of the race and missed to concentrate on the most exciting moments and cover less important things, they eventually gets it but late to scene. They have improved a lot lately, but there are still 'drifting off' moments. Also they are late to pick up incidents.

Sometimes Brundle had to openly ask to change camera. In 2009 they spent 45 minutes covering Alguersuari in Singapore and nothing else. I don't know what team radio they have access to, but they often play unimportant ones like Sebastian's engineer willing him on, multiple times throughout Abu Dhabi.

The BBC has no control over what images are shown. They are given the same feed as every other country and the person controlling that feed can't hear the BBC commentators!

Brundles requests are out of frustration, not expectation.

Same with the team radios, they don't have any control over what is played out on air and what is not.

[ShiftingGears]

Well without getting all the extra features that the BBC gets, Brundle and Kravitz did a good job this year. Legard - too verbose and I'm over commentators who don't have a proper grasp of what is really happening on circuit.

Was listening to Croft commentary on youtube and he was both informative and engaging. I hope he+Ant are part of the tv coverage next year.

[BDunnell]

The BBC coverage has been excellent this year, with the exception of you-know-who. But please, no David Croft as his replacement! I can't bear his slightly laddish 'mateyness' — sets my teeth on edge.

That said, as I now live overseas I don't know how much BBC coverage I will henceforth see or hear. I had the displeasure of watching it on RTL in Germany yesterday, and, as ever, the difference in quality between that and the BBC was like night and day. To be truthful, the same went for that and ITV!

[Garry Walker]

I'm over commentators who don't have a proper grasp of what is really happening on circuit.


Now you know why I always hated murray walker.

[ShiftingGears]

Now you know why I always hated murray walker.

Fair enough. I could've probably warmed to his sheer enthusiasm him when I was younger, but now, no.

[Dave B]

Season Review, BBC One / BBC One HD, 1:30pm Satuday 20th :D

[Mark]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsyOgYjrV8I&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Probably the best closing credits for any TV programme ever!

[inimitablestoo]

A good show, but too soon. One of the best bits of the ITV F1 season review was that, being on around New Year, it at least broke up that three-month gap between the end of one season and the start of the next. You could get your televised F1 fix and chances were they'd know a bit more about what would be happening next season.

At least this weekend's MotoGP review has come three weeks after the last race. Mainly because we had the final F1 race and the F1 review occupying the space inbetween, but still...

[Dave B]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsyOgYjrV8I&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Probably the best closing credits for any TV programme ever!
:up:

They recycled the end credits from the Abu Dhabi forum, but I can't blame them for wanting to give it a wider audience. That track just worked perfectly, didn't it? Number 38 on the UK charts, by the way.

I'm sure Jake's mentioned before that it's Sunil Patel who chooses the music for the montages, and he's made some inspired choices these last two years.

My personal favourites have been Biffy Clyro's cover of Rhianna's Umbrella at the rain-soaked 2009 Malaysian GP; the Diff'rent Strokes theme music at Turkey this year, in the week Gary Coleman passed away; and this closing montage from 2009, long before Florence & the Machine's version of You've Got The Love became the cliched default song choice for unimaginative producers everywhere:

ewB0rU28Hks

[Mark]

:up:

They recycled the end credits from the Abu Dhabi forum, but I can't blame them for wanting to give it a wider audience. That track just worked perfectly, didn't it? Number 38 on the UK charts, by the way.

They've had a music montage at the end of the season every year that I can remember, but I've never sat at the end of one before and thought "wow!".

I do agree the week after the race is too soon. More usually the highlights show is over the Christmas holidays which meant they should have shown the awards ceremony, a bit about what the champion has been doing and some of the early news for the next season. Now if the BBC are being really nice to us, they'll do that too ;)

[Mark]

:up:
That track just worked perfectly, didn't it?

I've just learned the reason that it worked so well. Because it was written specifically for the F1 coverage :up: . My admiration for the BBC just went up a notch!

[wedge]

Florence & the Machine's version of You've Got The Love became the cliched default song choice for unimaginative producers everywhere:

It's also one of the worst covers (of a song) ever.

[Dave B]

It's also one of the worst covers (of a song) ever.
Really?

Under Pressure :arrow: Ice Ice Baby (Vanilla Ice) :arrow: Ice Ice Baby (Jedward).

I rest my case m'lud :p

[52Paddy]

On watching the montage again, I must say that it really was a special season.

[Dave B]

Crash.net are reporting that Legard is definately gone, to be replaced in the commentary box by David Coulthard:


We have learned from a source close to Legard that the former Radio 5 Live man's contract will not be renewed into 2011, following two seasons in the F1 commentary box during which the 49-year-old failed to hit it off with Brundle and committed a number of well-publicised gaffes.


Crash.net understands that Brundle – a favourite both amongst F1 fans and inside the corporation – has successfully persuaded the BBC to replace Legard with his fellow former grand prix ace Coulthard, a driver who triumphed 13 times in the top flight between 1995 and 2003. The Scot will dovetail his new commentating duties with his ongoing punditry role alongside ex-team owner Eddie Jordan and the Beeb's anchorman Jake Humphrey.



http://www.crash.net/f1/news/165559/1/legard_exit_and_replacement_to_be_confirmed_by_bbc .html

[ShiftingGears]

Crash.net are reporting that Legard is definately gone, to be replaced in the commentary box by David Coulthard:



http://www.crash.net/f1/news/165559/1/legard_exit_and_replacement_to_be_confirmed_by_bbc .html

I would prefer Croft judging by the brief commentary I've heard from him, but BBC certainly can't do wrong if they have Brundle and Coulthard as commentators. A definite good move.

[Mark]

DC eh! I don't think we've had the commentors both being ex-drivers before but it's a good move :up:

[Mark]

Also I'd quite like it if they got rid of the split between commentators and presenters tbh. Have Brundle on screen with Jake, DC and Eddie.

[UltimateDanGTR]

Also I'd quite like it if they got rid of the split between commentators and presenters tbh. Have Brundle on screen with Jake, DC and Eddie.

Agreed. When Brundle is on screen both on the grid and in the post race forums, he is as excellent as the others. They certainly have a brilliant team at the Beeb, and getting rid of the weakness (JL) can only be a good thing. Hopefully the story is true.

[AndyL]

Being a commentator is a different skill from being an expert summariser/pundit I think. I wonder how DC would cope with this... if it's true. But if it is, I want Martin Brundle as my agent.

[BDunnell]

Hmmm. I find it hard to comprehend how either will make the step up to being the main commentator, which, like it or not, is a necessary role. Where is the evidence that either can perform said task?

[Sonic]

Hmmm. I find it hard to comprehend how either will make the step up to being the main commentator, which, like it or not, is a necessary role. Where is the evidence that either can perform said task?

Good point well made.

[Nikki Katz]

I'm not too convinced about this move if that's true. I think Couthard's been fine as one of the pundits, but as a main commentator?

[ArrowsFA1]

Hmmm. I find it hard to comprehend how either will make the step up to being the main commentator, which, like it or not, is a necessary role. Where is the evidence that either can perform said task?
That was my first thought. Brundle has proved to be an excellent foil for a commentator, and although the partnership with Legard didn't gel for whatever reason I'm not sure partnering him with another pundit is the answer. For one thing I hope it doesn't mean the end of his pre-race grid walks.

The BBC may find themselves weakening both the commentary & the pundit teams by moving DC. Still, time will tell and maybe for me listening to the tv commentary will be bearable now, and there's still the excellent (IMHO) Croft & Davidson on the radio as an alternative.

[Dave B]

For those who enjoyed Just Drive, there's a live performance on sports personality of the year tonight. Jake has been Tweeting from rehearsals.

[wedge]

Hmmm. I find it hard to comprehend how either will make the step up to being the main commentator, which, like it or not, is a necessary role. Where is the evidence that either can perform said task?

It's do-able.

Half the time Brundle was in command by showing how much of a chump Legard was (and in the other half I'm sure/assume he was in a state incomprehension wondering why he's standing next to Legard) and by that I mean Brundle was far, far superior and describing the action in a more eloquent and digestible manner.

Brundle has the credentials to be the main commentator. However it's usually the summariser who asks the question but now there's going to be 2 experts in the 'box. As DC and MB are buddies I'm sure this will be worked pretty quickly but also they'll need to be not too friendly that they risk freezing out the casual fan.

[gloomyDAY]

Why isn't Brundle there by himself?

Also, DC as a commentator strikes me as really odd. I can see both former GP drivers trying to duke it out to be number 1 in the commentating room.

[Mp3 Astra]

Are we making the assumption that DC will be the main commentator or the pundit? As a pundit he'd be great. MB is a good outright commentator: there was the odd occasion during his ITV years when he was the sole commentator and he did a good job. If DC is to be the main commentator, it would be very odd indeed, to be honest.

[tmx]

If DC is to be the main commentator, it would be very odd indeed, to be honest. No matter how bad he's going to be, going against Legard, I'd still prefer DC. "Down the back straight. Round the corner. Through turn 5 and 6. Webber, from Vettel, from Alonso, from Button...."

[Dave B]

A quick recap of some of the posts apparently lost in the move:

Legard tweeted his goodbyes this morning, swiftly followed by the BBC officially announcing that DC (Coulthard, not Croft!) would be partnering Brundle in the commentary box:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/9355081.stm

And seperately, Sky Germany became the first broadcaster to officially announce that they will be broadcasting the 2011 season in native HD. The BBC are expected to follow suit but no announcement has yet been made.

[Mark]

Stuff about 32" sets not being big enough for HD!

[tmx]

The only two mass consumer HD resolution used today (eg. Blu-ray) are 720p and 1080p. My Sharp 32" is capable of both res.

[Dave B]

The only two mass consumer HD resolution used today (eg. Blu-ray) are 720p and 1080p. My Sharp 32" is capable of both res.
You forgot 1080i which is used for HD broadcasting.

That said, I did hear a salesperson in a well-known electrical store tell a customer that the "p" stood for "pixels".

The same store in which a customer asked the difference between HD-ready and Full HD, to which the salesperson replied "Full HD is brighter".

There's no facepalm big enough... :s

[Dave B]

One HD in Australia have just joined Sky Germany in confirming native HD. I'm hopeful the BBC will soon be added to the list.

[Mark]

Unless Bernie is asking for a wad of cash, I can't see why we wouldn't have it on BBC1 HD this year. I just hope if they do, they do with a decent bitrate, like the football coverage, as when HD is done properly, it's just stunning!

[Daniel]

You forgot 1080i which is used for HD broadcasting.

That said, I did hear a salesperson in a well-known electrical store tell a customer that the "p" stood for "pixels".

The same store in which a customer asked the difference between HD-ready and Full HD, to which the salesperson replied "Full HD is brighter".

There's no facepalm big enough... :s

Then there is the monumentally facepalmtastic move towards 1920*1080 monitors for PC's which is driven by the ignorance of users as to what resolution is and what it means. I've got a 1920*1200 24" monitor for my PC and it's fanfriggingtastic, you can have two webpages open side by side, photos fit the screen better and it's just better for use as a monitor, but still you have the ignorant 1080p brigade who see 1920*1080 and say "OMFG it's HD!!!!! It's the best!" and so on.

[Mark]

Most of it stems from the original invention of CRTs using scanning electron guns, the only thing that really mattered was the number of lines it was able to scan. Now with LCD the number of lines is completely irrelevant, as it's the individual dots which are switched. But I reckon they just use one number as quoting two would be too confusing for most! - Actually one number seems too confusing for most!

[Daniel]

Actually one number seems too confusing for most!

Pretty much sums it up.

Seriously though, why are people today so freaking feckless? Personally I think the fact that simplistic terms like 480p 720p 1080p were invented to make things easier for people rather than educating people as to what resolution is, it's not frigging difficult!

Something as simple as this explains it all. Have a look at the difference between HD 1080 and WUXGA and you see why "high definition" doesn't mean "most detail" or "best picture" or whatever the mouthbreathers seem to think it means.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/Vector_Video_Standards2.svg/749px-Vector_Video_Standards2.svg.png

[Dave B]

I just hope if they do, they do with a decent bitrate, like the football coverage, as when HD is done properly, it's just stunning!
Both BBC HD channels now use a variable bitrate, so if the football looks stunning it's because of the relatively undemanding nature of the source material. Faster moving and more detailed shots will test the compression algorithms to their limits, but fingers crossed that F1 will look stunning. Either way it'll certainly be an improvement over SD.



But I reckon they just use one number as quoting two would be too confusing for most! - Actually one number seems too confusing for most!
Which is why the BBC HD channels (along with some of the ITV1 regions) never seem to get criticised for only having 1440 horizontal pixels rather than 1920. I don't suppose most people notice or care.

[Daniel]

Which is why the BBC HD channels (along with some of the ITV1 regions) never seem to get criticised for only having 1440 horizontal pixels rather than 1920. I don't suppose most people notice or care.

It's HD tho! :p

HD stuff on iPlayer looks pretty good on my 24" panel even though of course it's not proper HD. I really should get a Blu-ray drive and stop buying DVD's.

One thing that makes me laugh is that the most recent season or two of the Simpsons is in HD, by its very nature should cartoons not really benefit from HD?

[Mark]

On the contrary, the likes of cartoons or computer generated graphics have the most improvement on HD over SD. Just look (if you can stand it) at the size of DOG logos used on HD channels compared with SD, much smaller, you try that size in SD and it would just be a smudge.

[Dave B]

One thing that makes me laugh is that the most recent season or two of the Simpsons is in HD, by its very nature should cartoons not really benefit from HD?
On the contrary: with harsh angles, bright colours and fast pace, animation can benefit greatly from a move to HD. The Simpsons actually looks pretty stunning on the mkv downloads I've, erm, acquired.

[Daniel]

Learn something new every day :D

I'd be quite happy if F1 went to HD. It might be just the thing which might tempt Caroline into actually buying a nice big LCD tv :p

[Mark]

If you haven't got Sky HD then I'd recommend a 37" (or more) freesat enabled TV, so you can get BBC HD channels without any subscription charges. Myself I have Sky SD plus freesat.

[Daniel]

If you haven't got Sky HD then I'd recommend a 37" (or more) freesat enabled TV, so you can get BBC HD channels without any subscription charges. Myself I have Sky SD plus freesat.

Well I'd probably want SkyHD if not for the HD episodes of the Simpsons. Would definitely get a freesat tv though. Going further and further off topic....... does your TV now support streaming over the net through iPlayer?

[Mark]

Well I'd probably want SkyHD if not for the HD episodes of the Simpsons. Would definitely get a freesat tv though. Going further and further off topic....... does your TV now support streaming over the net through iPlayer?

No :mad: Panasonic sets made in 2009 and 2010 do, as do most freesat products, but apparently they are having trouble getting it working on my 2008 set (bought in Jan 2009 and discontinued a month later), I have serious doubts if it'll ever appear.

But, new Panasonic sets will definitely have it. Details on the freesat website.

[Dave B]

Well I'd probably want SkyHD if not for the HD episodes of the Simpsons. Would definitely get a freesat tv though. Going further and further off topic....... does your TV now support streaming over the net through iPlayer?
The specs for streaming TVs seem to change every few days, and some of them are tied to certain providers - the LG I looked at uses NetFlix, and to get iPlayer needs a firmware update. Personally I'd connect the PC and a cordless mouse and not be tied down, you've got the whole internet plus your own media collection to choose from. Just ensure your graphics card will support the native resolution of your panel and off you go!

[Mark]

We now use our Wii for iPlayer, the quality isn't great, but it'll suffice.

If only we could get Virgin cable here!

[MrMetro]

We now use our Wii for iPlayer, the quality isn't great, but it'll suffice.

If only we could get Virgin cable here!


You could always get freesat. it has BBC HD and other HD channels, and now there are boxes which allow bbc i player.

[Mark]

You could always get freesat. it has BBC HD and other HD channels, and now there are boxes which allow bbc i player.

I already have freesat, see above :)

[Dave B]

YAY! :D

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/9359509.stm




The BBC will broadcast Formula 1 in high definition for the first time this coming season. The move comes after F1 commercial body FOM confirmed that all broadcasters will be supplied with a high-definition feed for the first time.

[Mark]

w00t!

[Dave B]

Jake's blogged about the changes - I gather from his tweets that he wrote this a few days ago but couldn't say anything until now:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/jakehumphrey/2011/01/ringing_the_changes_for_2011.html