The BBC has further responded to criticism over the axing of Radio Scotland’s flagship piping programme ‘Pipeline’. A series of well-supported complaints petitions was launched, somewhat belatedly, after Piping Press revealed the story last December.
The Corporation did respond to our article at the time but now BBC Scotland’s Head of Commissioning, Louise Thornton, has underlined what was said in answer to our report – and confirmed continued coverage of the Worlds.
In a letter in the Press & Journal newspaper (yesterday, Jan 31) she replied to Gaelic writer and activist Angus Peter Campbell’s letter to the same newspaper (Jan 26) headed ‘Shame on the BBC for Switching off Piping’.
Ms Thornton dismissed Mr Campbell’s letter as ‘inaccurate’ and continued: ‘BBC Radio Scotland is not removing pipe music from its schedules.
‘A new piping programme will remain in the current ‘Pipeline’ slot on a Saturday. Until that change is made ‘Pipeline’ will continue to air, so there will be no break in dedicated programming for pipe music. It is also worth noting that we will also continue to cover live events such as the World Pipe Band Championships.’
Ms Thornton then goes on to blame the freezing of the BBC licence fee for the ‘decommissioning’ of two other music programmes, ‘Classics Unwrapped’ and ‘Jazz Nights’.
She says the corporation is refocusing on digital output in response to how audiences are now consuming content and adds, ‘BBC Scotland currently invests £5m every year in the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. But until now the orchestra’s concerts have not been heard on BBC Radio Scotland. In future they will be…’
She concludes, ‘BBC Scotland will continue to have music programmes on air every day of the week across a range of genres….’
We are grateful to our correspondent Duncan Watson for forwarding the correspondence from the Press & Journal. Mr Watson writes, ‘In regards to ‘Pipeline’, on many occasions I am disappointed by the content and, using the descriptive term applied to the old fashioned wireless, ‘I screw the power button off’.
‘In order to hear some interesting features I have endured groups with guitars and the like. If there is a demand for that, then a separate programme might be considered. The piping programme should not be watered down as it has been in recent years.
‘In times past, solo piping and pipe bands were the heart of the programme. It was informative and interesting. Currently at times there are repeats and those repeats can occur within a very few weeks, though I will say repeats of historical archival material is of interest.
‘I appreciate that the programme producers may have difficulty obtaining fresh material so why not ask pipers to contribute? There’s is a lot of very good equipment out there. This may require a certain amount of monitoring to ensure that the standard of recordings and playing is acceptable, but it could encourage a greater listening audience than seems to be the case if ‘Pipeline’ is being discontinued..
‘Reference is made to the coverage of the World Pipe Band Championships. Important though it is, it is a relatively small part of piping activity, taking place but once a year and invariably there are multiple repeats of some of those performances.
‘It is noted in the content of Ms Thorburn’s letter that the BBC Scotland invests £5 million every year in the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.
‘I genuinely wish the orchestra the very best of health. However it seems with that kind of investment that money is available from the licence fee which I along with others pay. I doubt if the cost of the piping programme for an hour a week costs anything like what is invested in the orchestra.’
