The first recording today starts with the end of Finley the Fire Engine.
There’s a trail for Bob the Builder.
Then, an episode of Jackanory Junior – The Great Tug of War read by Don Gilet.
Media Centre Description: Story time for young viewers. Don Gilet tells the story of a cheeky hare who persuades a hippo and an elephant to have a tug of war that neither can possibly win.
Recorded from CBeebies on Wednesday 29th August 2007 17:13
BBC Genome: CBeebies Wednesday 29th August 2007 17:15
There’s a trail for Big Fun Time.
Then Sid goes a bit sci-fi.
Then the recording stops after a few minutes of Jakers!
The next recording is fairly epic. It’s four hours plus of Spike Lee’s monumental documentary about the effects of Hurricane Katrina on the population of New Orleans. But it wasn’t only the hurricane and the flooding. It was also the woeful response from the federal government during and after the devastation, the useless insurance companies who would find any excuse not to pay out, families separated for months without knowing of the others are alive or dead, the failure of the Army Corp of Engineers, whose work on the flood defences, the Levees of the title, was knowingly faulty, and the fact that most of the people most badly affected happen to be black.
This is a documentary which features a two minute montage of dead bodies left in the streets for days and weeks. It’s horrifying.
When the Levees Broke
Media Centre Description: Director Spike Lee’s intimate portrait of New Orleans in the wake of the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina. Shocked not only by the scale of the disaster, but by the slow and disorganised response of the emergency and recovery effort, Lee interviewed nearly 100 people, including Governor Kathleen Blanco, Mayor Ray Nagin, residents Phyllis Montana LeBlanc, activist Al Sharpton and and musician Wynton Marsalis as he tells the stories of those who endured this harrowing ordeal.
Recorded from BBC FOUR on Wednesday 29th August 2007 20:00
BBC Genome: BBC FOUR Wednesday 29th August 2007 20:00
After this, there’s a trail for The Protestant Revolution.
Then the recording stops with the start of Wildlife in a War Zone.
The next recording starts with the end of a National Lottery draw, and look – is this the first time we’ve seen the dreadful London 2012 Olympic Logo here? It seemed like such a bad omen.
There’s a trail for Consenting Adults.
Then, another episode of Outnumbered. This scheduling puzzles me. It’s really late, after the news on BBC One, and they’re showing several episodes in a week. It’s almost like they want to dump it. It’s very puzzling.
The children have a friend over for tea, and they’re all taking turns to hurl colourful insults. Sue is joining in with them.
Sue gets a phone call, but whoever is calling just hangs up. Jake suggests “Otto’s Dad had that. When he picked up the phone, they always hung up. Found out his wife was cheating on him.” These days you’d just assume it was a call centre robocall. And I did appreciate the reference to MSN Messenger. I miss MSN Messenger.
Jake talks to his grandad. “Hi, Grandad! No, no, you only have to say I live with you if anyone from my school comes round.” So they’ve definitely played the postcode catchment game to get him into his new school.
Karen doesn’t want to eat her food because it’s not in her special bowl. Somehow she can tell it’s not her bowl. “Well, it isn’t her bowl, because I dropped hers this morning. I had to drive all the way to IKEA to get her one that’s identical. But it is identical. Well, then, how does she know? I don’t know. She must have…powers.”
There’s a bit of dialogue missing when Pete comes home, that’s on the iPlayer version. “Five arrested, two pregnant, one shot. Not too bad. Not just today. In the summer holidays.” “Shot?” “It was only an air rifle. And it was Thomson, so he had it coming. He’s limping round school like he’s Scarface, signing autographs.” It can’t have been for content reasons as these are going out so late. Maybe it was a time thing.
They’re worried about Ben’s lying. “What does Doctor Internet say?” “Why do you always assume I’ve been on the…? OK, well there’s this woman in New Zealand and she’s doing this blog and she’s got a son who’s a bit like Ben and it’s fairly reassuring…” “Because?” “Because he’s slightly worse than Ben.” “Oh, that’s all right then. So, of the five billion people on Earth, we know that one lies more than Ben.” It was always blogs in those days, although Mumsnet also existed then.
Ben and his friend Deion are having fun with loo roll.
Jake asks Pete “Dad? What’s all this about you being a racist?” So he has to explain to Sue what’s been happening at school. “It was that kid Kemal again.” “The fat Turkish kid?” “Yeah. He was stuffing his face, as per usual, in lessons, munching through a bag of crisps, and I said to him, purely frivolously, “You could do with Ramadan lasting all year round, couldn’t you, Kemal?” Quite witty, really. And now his dad has said I singled him out because of his religion.”
They get some Trick or Treaters at the door. “Trick or treat.” “It’s September. Halloween isn’t till the end of October.” “Yeah, but we’re away then, so, y’know…”
They have another visitor – it’s Sue’s sister Angela, who (we already know) is rather flighty, and forever travelling around. She’s brought presents for her neice and nephews. Then she drops the bombshell that she’s going to stay with their father. “I did a lot of thinking on holiday and you’re right, it’s my turn. And Dad’s not going to live forever. I want to spend some time with him.” From Sue’s reaction, I’m thinking she doesn’t think this is good news.
Media Centre Description: Comedy series about the daily rollercoaster of life with three young children. Dad has strayed into a job-threatening controversy at school, Mum is starting a turf war with her sister and young Ben is further developing his extraordinary talent for lying.
Recorded from BBC ONE on Wednesday 29th August 2007 22:38
BBC Genome: BBC ONE Wednesday 29th August 2007 22:40
After this, there’s a trail for Panorama: Dog Fighting Undercover. Plus a trail for Grandad’s Back in Business.
Then the recording stops after a couple of minutes of My Boss’s Daughter.