#War011 - BIAS AGAINST RURAL LIFE & PERSUITS

#War011 - BIAS AGAINST RURAL LIFE & PERSUITS

17 February 2009 12:28 PM

One Man and His Blog

I had forgotten until BBC Radio Oxford phoned me this morning that on February 17 1976 “One Man and His Dog” was broadcast for the very first time. It made Phil Drabble a household name – he was a bit over-dressed – and I was never convinced that he actually liked Border Collies – but he was great, the programme was great and it developed a huge following.

When I was asked to follow on from Phil on his retirement I was honoured. I didn’t even know that a new presenter was wanted, but by a stroke of luck Phil Drabble was making a series on conservation for the BBC and they came to my small farm, with my good friend Gordon Beningfield, the sadly departed countryside artist, to film a small segment for the programmes. For some reason the producer liked what I did for the programme and suggested I put my name forward to replace Phil:” you are a natural”, he said.

I was short-listed, screen tested and I got the job against some top-line experienced presenters. I loved it. I felt it was an honour – a true country programme with real people in some of the most beautiful parts of the country.

But oh dear, who was in charge of programming? A grey man with a ten o’clock shadow; someone called Mark Thompson. Sadly the man who now pays Jonathon Ross £16,000 a day didn’t like sheep dog trialling so he switched the programme to 3.00 on a Saturday afternoon to reduce viewing figures. It worked, even I didn’t watch it on a Saturday afternoon and viewing figures plummeted to the same number as Countryfile, so One Man and His Dog was axed (but Countryfile stayed on – very odd).

Fortunately I organised a protest and personally delivered thousands of letters to the Television Centre demanding the programme’s return. That in itself is interesting. The BBC received thousands of letters saying sack Jonathan Ross and they kept him – the BBC received thousands of letters saying keep me and One Man and His Dog, so they sacked me and dumbed the programme down to a pathetic parody of itself

The powers that be were appalled that I, a Vocal Yokel, had managed to drum up so much support – and all that without a degree – how shocking. But they got their revenge. It had been noted that I had stood for Parliament for the Referendum Party (saving my deposit) and took part in the various Countryside Rallies and Marches – consequently I was sacked for “my attitude” towards the dumbed down programme – which was rubbish – and more sinisterly – “your other activities”. “My other activities” – what have they got to do with presenting a sheep dog programme?

As far as the BBC is concerned I have been virtually persona non grata ever since – the highlight - being invited onto “Question Time” – the invitation being suddenly withdrawn two days before the programme, with no valid explanation – and it was never re-issued. Is that a record?

Interestingly David Bellamy also stood for the Referendum Party and took part in the Countryside Marches – he vanished from the BBC at the same time – there’s integrity and even handed public service broadcasting for you. Never mind – I suppose David Bellamy’s departure made room for that wonderful bunny and grey squirrel hugger Bill Oddie – urban, Oxbridge and Vice-President of the League Against Cruel Sports. Obviously my “other activities” were the wrong ones.

The good thing about the One Man and His Dog dramas is the fact that the BBC crew – who I got on extremely well with, presented me with a wonderful hand carved crook – which is still one of my most treasured possessions.

All was not lost because there is an even better programme than “One Man and His Dog” – it is called “Come Bye” – proper sheepdog trialling on Horse and Country Television (Sky Channel 280). Despite financial hiccups – we hope that last year’s World Championships will be on before too long.

That was a remarkable event, with 50,000 spectators and twenty-two competing countries.

The most astonishing aspect of the competition of course was the fact that although it was a World Championship held in Britain, it was totally ignored by the BBC.

I am afraid from all my experiences of the BBC from Question Time, Countryfile, One Man and His Dog, The One Show etc I can only conclude that the BBC is institutionally uninterested in the real countryside, the people who live and work in it, and the problems and the discrimination that they face day by day. All this of course breaks the BBC’s own Charter and the codes of conduct derived from it – and whose in charge? Yes, Mark Thompson – him again.

To view Robin Page's Original Article in The Mail LINK

#War006 - BBC SQUIRREL COOK IN by Robin PAGE!

#War006 - BBC SQUIRREL COOK IN by Robin PAGE!

Informing on the One Show

That the One Show should be involved in all this nonsense is totally unsurprising. Last year I was invited onto it to talk about grey squirrels – yes I want them severely controlled. Oddly, the pro-squirrel guest was the urban Anika Rice. The famous “Green Room” was full of luvvies being luvvies – telling each other what they had done, where they had been and how absolutely luvvy they all were. I read a book.

Earlier in the day a researcher had asked me what I would do to control grey squirrels – “eat them”, I replied. I have eaten them casseroled, as a burger and as squirrel pate.
“Will you get us a squirrel to eat on the programme?” they asked. In next to no time a gamekeeper friend had three squirrels dressed and jointed, ready for the oven.

Then came the politically correct message; “Oh it has been decided that you can’t eat squirrel on the show, it is wrong to kill animals for entertainment”.

So the One Show had caused three squirrels to be killed for no reason at all. The odd thing about this of course is the fact that the BBC is almost Cookery Programmed out with Ready Steady Cook etc – all using meat as part of their “entertainment”.

Perhaps BBC executives don’t realise that beef, lamb and pork are just as much “animal” as squirrels.

After the programmes, the main presenter, the rather characterless, bland, Adrian Chiles said:” You won’t write about this will you Robin?” Why not? What a shower – and was it you Adrian who behaved so despicably against Carol Thatcher – were you the INFORMER?

The one good thing about the programme was that Anneka Rice appeared to know nothing about squirrels, and the next day “Save Our Squirrels” the organisation fighting for red squirrels asked me to be their Patron. That of course will teach the BBC absolutely nothing.

So Dave, come on – for goodness sake organise a BBC licence boycott – if enough people did it the Government would have to take action against the Bigots Broadcasting Corporation. If Dastardly Dave is too much of a wimp – how about the Mail leading the way?

To view the original of this pre BBC Bias Article telling what goes on behind the scenes and showing just cow dishonest The BBC actually is CLICK HERE

#War005 - Come on Dave - Boycott the BBC (Robin Page)

#War005 - Come on Dave - Boycott the BBC (Robin Page)

Come on Dave – so far during my time of political re-think, you have shown that you couldn’t actually lead a sugar mouse out of a paper bag – now show some leadership – stop being a political pc-wimp and lead a licence-payers’ strike against the BBC.

What is going on? Carol Thatcher has had a private conversation with contributors to the BBC’s increasingly dreary and predictable “One Show”. Her conversation has been entirely legal, yet an informer has complained to the BBC’s thought-police and she has been sacked from the programme. Incredible – Jonathan Ross’s obscene phone call actually broke the law – he gets suspended; Carol Thatcher had a legal, private conversation – she is fired. Just as in Eastern Europe before the wall came down, or in the Third Reich, an “informer” has reported her for incorrect behaviour (1984) and she has been punished.

What a state to be in. Britain is gradually filling with informers, Quislings, collaborators and vigilantes, as New Labour turns into New Fascism. In the new order of things left has become right and right has become confused. To help show how politics has been hijacked by the devious and dangerous – remember Henry Williamson, author of that wonderful book “Tarka the Otter”. Despite his books he never received an honour – why? He believed in a united Europe – just like today’s EU and for his trouble he was called “right wing” and “a fascist”.
Now bizarrely, and I cannot work out how it has happened, those of us who are AGAINST the EU superstate are referred to as “right wing”. Sixty years ago we would have been left wing and acceptable. Today we are apparently right wing and unacceptable. Can somebody explain please as I am clearly rather dim?

So Carol Thatcher’s crime is that she suggested that a French tennis player with ringlets looked like a golliwog. Well, the fact is that I don’t know his name, but I think I know who she means simply because he does looks like a golliwog. When I was a child I had a golliwog; today I have a golliwog mug and when I went to America a couple of years ago I bought a collection of Little Black Sambo stories, sold to me by a black shop-assistant. When I told her how pleased I was to find the book and that in England it would be difficult to buy, she said:” How ridiculous, the stories and illustrations are wonderful – they should offend no-one – they are beautiful”. Never mind, most of the pc-whites at the BBC would presumably not regard her, as proper black – white BBC executives are the true defenders of black people from racism.

But who informed on Carol Thatcher – that is the big question. They should either be sacked or sent to Malawi for a month for a bit of education. Last time I went there I flew to Lilongwe from Harare on Air Where Are We, sorry, Air Malawi, and that was after a flight on Zambia Scareways – sorry again, Zambia Airways. Oh dear, and once in my hotel I received my first shock – the local paper had an obituary for a “Mr.Sambo – a true born nigger”.


When I first went to Malawi it was run by a “wicked dictator”, Dr Hastings Banda. The airport was efficient and the planes ran on time; the new capital showed vision with large plots of fast growing eucalyptus planted throughout the city for wood and charcoal; the roads were repaired and the streetlights worked. Outside the land was tended and for the first time for decades Malawi could feed itself. But oh, woe, pc Britain in the form of Tory Lynda Chalker, Baroness Wallasey, decided that Malawi was undemocratic.



It was almost as undemocratic as the system that had made Lynda Chalker a Baroness. In 1992 Lynda Chalker was democratically thrown out of the House of Commons. She was then undemocratically made Baroness Chalker, and although the electorate had rejected her, she continued in Government. From there, as Minister of State for Overseas Development, she had the audacity to lecture Malawi about “democracy”.


Well, Malawi is a democracy now and it is also a shambles. Corruption is rife, the country no longer feeds itself – the country no longer works – so that is what Lynda Chalker evidently regards as the fruits of democracy.

Go, “One Show” informer and actually learn something in Africa and I would almost bet my bottom dollar that you will be able to buy a golliwog in Blantyre.

To view Robin Page's original Blog of this item on The Mail online at CLICK HERE