Shortly after Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh and the husband of Queen Elizabeth II, passed away last Friday, the BBC cut off the schedule to broadcast special coverage on its TV channels and radio stations throughout the afternoon and night.
As popular shows aired – including Friday’s episode of ‘EastEnders’, a soap opera presented since 1985, and the latest installment of ‘MasterChef’, a cooking competition program, the BBC was flooded with displeasure. To be precise: 109,741 complaints were received, the BBC said on Thursday, making it the biggest moment in BBC history.
As Britain’s British broadcaster, the BBC has an excellent position in the British media, and public funding through a license fee puts it in a difficult position. It is frequently attacked for being too liberal and too conservative, while the government, currently a Conservative government, controls access to public funding.
The BBC is trying to reflect the mood of the country, but recently a heated debate has erupted over the role of the royal family following Oprah Winfrey’s interview with Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex.
Too little coverage of tributes to the Duke and the BBC would run the risk of not showing proper respect for his life. After all, the broadcaster received so many online complaints that on Friday it instituted a streamlined process – a dedicated online form – to disappoint people about its scope.
The BBC said on Thursday that the death of the Duke of Edinburgh ‘was a major event of great international and international interest’ ‘and that the decision to change the schedule had been taken with careful consideration, reflecting’ the role that the BBC plays as the national broadcaster, during moments of national importance. ”
Two commercial broadcasters followed divergent approaches. ITV, like the BBC, apparently also saw a huge drop in viewers last Friday amid the many hours of Prince Philip. Channel 4 had special programs, but then offered viewers a break by broadcasting a popular program, “Gogglebox”, at 9pm, which shows people watching TV.
On Saturday, the BBC and ITV will broadcast the funeral of the Duke of Edinburgh, which will not be available to the public due to pandemic restrictions.