BBC Archives - Desperate Living

The Triumph Of The Trivial

The complacency and refusal to change of traditional broadcasters has allowed YouTube to outdo them in almost every aspect.

The Clothes Show’s Infamous ‘Allo ‘Allo-Themed Fashion Shoot

Putting the fash into fashion, the BBC series The Clothes Show does a shoot based on the wartime comedy that is awash with swastikas. Unsurprisingly, viewers object.

The Forbidden Weekend – The BBC’s Censorship Season

2 Comments.

Film censorship explored in a 1995 BBC season of controversial movies and documentaries that explore the BBFC and British moral attitudes.

The Ghosts Of Christmas TV Past

It’s fashionable to mock the Christmas TV specials of the past – so why can’t our broadcasters let go of them?

Ding Dong! The Lusty Libertine Adventures Of Casanova ’73

The notorious Leslie Phillips sit-com of the 1970s is not quite the sexist atrocity that it has been made out to be.

The Tour Of Life: The Kate Bush German And British TV Specials

The documentaries about Kate Bush’s 1979 tour are a refreshing change from her usual trivial treatment on television at the time.

Arena’s Strange Stories And Babylonian Afterlife

A collection of eleven extraordinary and essential arts documentaries for you to watch.

2001: A UHD Odyssey

1 Comment

Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece has been waiting for the arrival of 4K and big-screen TVs to finally be able to be appreciated in the home.

A Hot Take: John Noakes Was A Bit Of A Cunt

The truth about the beloved children’s TV presenter and his canine sidekick is a little hard to swallow.

Popular Doesn’t Mean Interesting

1 Comment

News services need to focus on pushing stories that are actually important instead of celebrity trivia and sports results.

Britain’s New Moral Panic Part One: The OnlyFans Ad Backlash

Britain currently seems in the grip of a new moral panic over porn – but then, when is Britain ever not in a moral panic over porn? Even so, this week seems especially hysterical.

Russ Meyer On Casablanca

5 Comments.

The king of Bosomania discusses his favourite film on the BBC.