Do Geordies and Cumbria residents get annoyed with the BBC television regional news?

Question

I am on the NTL (Virgin Media) cable television network. I am often puzzled at the way the BBC seem to mix the North West of England and the North East on the television Interactive regional news.

Why? Well, when I click on the North East Regional television news I sometimes see news items relating to the Lake District, and the Isle of Man, which are in the North WEST of England. Can anyone think of a reason why the BBC does this? I can't make sense of it, but perhaps someone else can!!

Answer 1

As Harry Hill would say there's only one way to settle this !

Answer 2

From when I used to work up in Cumbria, I think this is not really to do with bias, but simply that the BBC Transmitters covering the far north of England in general cover both the far northeast and far northwest of England so news from both gets included. Considerations are different according to whether you have an old analogue TV, a more up to date digital Freeview set or get all your TV channels including BBC via satellite, but in all cases the whole of the far north is covered..

For example for analogue TV the Pontop Pike transmitter's coverage area extends right across Cumbria as well as Northumberland. Or  if you receive your signal on Freeview (digital) your transmitter at Lancaster again extends across eastward well into "Geordieland" and that area is also covered if you get your signal by Sky satellite.  But further southward people in the area of Liverpool and Manchester receive their signals from a different transmitter location to people in Yorkshire.

Answer 3

For a long time, the Newcastle version of Look North has covered "North East and Cumbria" - a ridiculously wide area for a local news programme to cover. It's watched as far north as Berwick, as far west as Carlisle and as far south as York and Harrogate (in much of North Yorkshire, you can get either the Newcastle Look North or the Leeds one, depending on which way you point your aerial).

As a result, some areas get very little coverage and some barely get mentioned at all. That has to be very annoying.

Answer 4

As a Cumbrian I believe apathy to be at the root of this situation.We accept that for BBC North West we must tune in to 978 on Sky but there is little regarding the old county of Westmorland ever discussed or reported,from Manchester This also applies to the ITV channel which tells us more about Berwick and the Isle of Man two places I've never even been to.The Border area Lottery disbursements also never seem to consider Kendal projects,and Kendal is the biggest town in what was Westmorland.Because nobody bothers we are also the fist area to be digitalised even though without Sky we cannot even recieve channel 5.Our apathy allows the authority to ride roughshod over this locale.

sky

Answer 5

That's because the broadcasts are:-   BBC Look North, North East & Cumbria!!