Bobby on BBC4

[si]

Flicking through the channels at about half one this morning, I found an awful quiz show thing on BBC4 – I think it was that ‘We Need Answers’ that I’ve seen mentioned in passing.

Anyway, contestants were Julia Bradbury and our very own Robert Llewellyn. It was very cheap and nasty. Particularly annoying was when they asked JB a question about RL – “True or False – series nine of Red Dwarf was filmed in space?”

Instead of giving the answer ‘Trick question! There IS no Red Dwarf IX!’ [yet, obviously…]

Anyone else see it?

Topic

[Ian Symes]

Ooh, look:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00hq4fj/We_Need_Answers_Motoring/

[John Hoare]

I saw the live version of We Need Answers at Edinburgh last year, and it was by far the best thing I saw all Fringe. Absolutely fantastic entertainment – it had such a sheer JOY about it.

It also felt like it’d transfer brilliantly to television, and I knew a series had been commissioned, but I didn’t know it was actually on! Will watch it tonight and see if it captures the spirit of the live version…

[si]

>Instead of giving the answer ?Trick question! There IS no Red Dwarf IX!? [yet, obviously?]

That was supposed to carry on with, “they just went with ‘False’, which annoyed the fuck out of me.”

Just so you know.

[hummingbird]

> I saw the live version of We Need Answers at Edinburgh last year

Heh. I watched the clip before I read that and thought it had the feel of a Fringe show.

> It was very cheap and nasty.

That feels very intentional. Besides, I don’t think it would work half as well if it were more polished.
I liked it.

[ChrisM]

There was a reality cookery show on fairly recently (I forget the name, there are so many) and I’m pretty sure Robert was narrating it. I didn’t catch his name in the credits, but he’s got quite a distinctive voice… and it was particularly noticable after just turning over from “How do they do that?”

Come to think of it I think I heard Craig’s voice in (I think) a dog food commercial…

[Blisschick]

Ugh…I have been kicked to the curb by BBC. I’m not allowed to view the video because I’m not a British citizen. [insert indignation here] Well!

Do they do that sort of thing to viewers outside the US? Just curious.

[Dave]

>Do they do that sort of thing to viewers outside the US? Just curious.

Yes

[si]

>Come to think of it I think I heard Craig?s voice in (I think) a dog food commercial?

“It’s been charcoal broiled in garlic butter, and is going to taste delicious…”

[Mr Flibble]

Do they do that sort of thing to viewers outside the US? Just curious.

They block it to everyone outside the UK. Because we pay for it, and you don’t. So ner.

[Blisschick]

*sniff* You had to go off and get all righteous, didn’t ya? :-P

[hummingbird]

Yeah, but we get blocked from seeing all sorts of other stuff.
Swings ‘n’ roundabouts.

[Blisschick]

That doesn’t seem fair that they would block viewers outside the US since we don’t have buy a license here. I know we pay for it in other ways, though, like exhaustive advertising. Thank God for TiVo!

[Ian Symes]

It’s all to do with rights and licensing – content providers have to block people from outside the country of origin because they usually only sign deals to distribute the material in one particular country.

[locusceruleus]

>They block it to everyone outside the UK. Because we pay for it, and you don?t. So ner.

Did you know people in Holland receive all the BBC channels for free? It’s true.

[Ian Symes]

Those Dutch bastards.

[locusceruleus]

I know. If there was anything close to decent on there, or I’d ever actually paid my TV license in my life, I’d be mildly annoyed.

[Blisschick]

>Did you know people in Holland receive all the BBC channels for free? It?s true.

Should I be insulted by this?

[Jonathan Capps]

I can confirm that in Prague the only BBC channel they get is Worldwide. It’s shit.

[locusceruleus]

>Should I be insulted by this?

Unless you’re Dutch and pissed off at having EastEnders thrust upon you, no.

[ChrisM]

>?It?s been charcoal broiled in garlic butter, and is going to taste delicious??

Ok, that sound familiar. I’m sure I’ve heard him in more than 1.

>Yeah, but we get blocked from seeing all sorts of other stuff.

That is true. I started getting irritated by the Starwars newsletters that appear in my in-box telling me that I can watch the latest episodes of Clone Wars online, and when I follow the link, “Not available in your area.”

(Speaking of Clone Wars, I checked my local cinema listings for this week and they’re showing the film again! I’ve yet to see much of that stuff.* I read mixed things… although generally positive. Certainly compared to the prequels.

*Well ok… I saw part of an episode… on another site. The narrators ‘story so far’ voice is annoying. I know why they took that route but I’d prefer the classic scrolly text.

[Ben Paddon]

I wonder if BBC America will show the Red Dwarf specials…

[Blisschick]

I’m wondering that, too. We ditched DirecTv awhile back, and the crappy cable company we have now doesn’t even carry it with the premium package. We keep talking about getting DirecTv again (the dish is still outside and connectable), if anything for the Sci-Fi and National Geographic channels. Getting Sci-Fi back is mostly what he wants if for, but I’m really bugging him about it in hopes RD will be shown on BBC America. If I have to wait and see it during a PBS telethon before I can buy it, I think I’ll hang myself.

[Ben Paddon]

It’s no skin off my nose, as I’ll be in the UK visiting family when it airs (I might even be able to convince my girlfriend that it’s worth watching now they’ve ditched the laugh track).

[Author]

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