Today programme
Encyclopedia
Today is BBC Radio 4
's long-running early morning news and current affairs programme, now broadcast from 6.00 am to 9.00 am Monday to Friday, and 7.00 am to 9.00 am on Saturdays. It is also the most popular programme on Radio 4 and one of the BBC's most popular programmes across its radio networks. It consists of regular news bulletins, serious and often confrontational political interviews and in-depth reports, and an often criticised religious slot of 3m 15s. It has been voted the most influential news programme in Britain in setting the political agenda. The programme has 6.6 million listeners. It was voted the Best Breakfast Show of the Year at the 2010 Sony Radio Academy Awards with an average audience of 10 million listeners.
's Home Service
on 28 October 1957 as a programme of 'topical talks' to give listeners a morning alternative to light music
. It was initially broadcast as two 20-minute editions slotted in around the existing news bulletins and religious and musical items. In 1963 it became part of the BBC's Current Affairs department, and it started to become more news-orientated. The two editions also became longer, and by the end of the 1960s it had become a single two-hour long programme that enveloped the news bulletins and the religious talk that had become Thought for the Day
. Radio 4 controller Ian McIntyre cut it back to two parts in 1976-1978 (creating a gap which was filled by Up to the Hour
), but it was swiftly returned to its former position.
Jack de Manio
became its principal presenter in 1958. He was held in affection by listeners, but became notorious for on-air gaffes. In 1970 the programme format was changed so that there were two presenters each day. De Manio left in 1971, and in the late seventies the team of John Timpson
and Brian Redhead
became established.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, under editors Ken Goudie and Julian Holland, Today made moves to broaden its appeal away from broadcasting a lot of national politics with London-centric bias. Presentation was split between London, usually by John Timpson
, and from Manchester, usually by Brian Redhead
. The objective was to make it more of a balanced, national programme. The on-air humour of the two presenters and the split of locations made the programme very popular and influential. Brian Redhead
was quoted, "If you want to drop a word in the ear of the nation, then this is the programme in which to do it."
This pairing lasted until Timpson's retirement in 1986, when John Humphrys
and Sue MacGregor
joined the rotating list of presenters (there had been others alongside Redhead and Timpson, including Libby Purves
in the late 1970s). After Redhead's death in January 1994, James Naughtie
became a member of the team. Peter Hobday presented the programme regularly until 1996; Sarah Montague
replaced MacGregor in 2002. Carolyn Quinn
was a regular presenter until 2008 as was Edward Stourton until 2009. Other more occasional presenters include the BBC's Stephen Sackur
and Tim Franks. Most recently Evan Davis
and Justin Webb
have joined the roster of regular presenters.
The show reached a peak in terms of influence in the 1980s, when Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
was a noted listener. Ministers thus became keen to go on the programme and be heard by their leader, but the tough, confrontational interviewing style they encountered led to accusations that the BBC was biased. Criticism was particularly directed against Redhead, who was widely seen as being on the left. The style of the male interviewers was analysed and contrasted with that of MacGregor, who was alleged to be giving subjects an easier time. The 'Big 8.10' interview that follows the 8 o'clock news remains an important institution of British politics to this day.
in 1996, forced the programme-makers to consider more innovative polling questions. In 2004 listeners nominated candidates for a peerage
, in 2005 the question was set of 'Who Runs Britain?' (though this, too, turned out to be rigged). Recent years have also included nominations for a 'Listener's Law' (which an MP agreed to sponsor as a parliamentary bill, although he did not support the winning nomination, which he thought was not appropriate), and, in 2006, nominations were sought for the law that listeners would most like to see repealed.
In Thought for the Day, featured since 1970, a speaker reflects on topical issues from a theological viewpoint; the editorial responsibility lying with BBC's Religion and Ethics Department (a point often made on the Today Programme). Notable contributors to the slot include Rabbi Lionel Blue
and Richard Harries, the former Bishop of Oxford
. Over the years the slot has featured an increasing number of speakers from religions other than Christianity
, though Christian speakers remain in a substantial majority. In August 2002 University of Oxford
professor Richard Dawkins
gave a non-religious humanist
thought for the day; however, this did not replace the regular thought and was broadcast an hour later as an alternative thought.
In 1983 the long-running "Prayer for the Day
", which had always gone on air at 6.50am, was moved to 6.25am and replaced by a "Business News" slot.
The programme has a regular slot for sports news and items between 26 and 30 minutes past each hour, presented by Steve May or Garry Richardson
. It is an established in-joke that the presenters will pour scorn on the reliability of the programme's racing tipster. If Parliament
is in session the previous day there will be a summary at about 06:50 (Yesterday in Parliament) presented by two from Robert Orchard
, David Wilby, Rachel Hooper and Susan Hulme.
Journalist and historian Peter Hennessy
has made an assertion, in one of his books, that a test that the commander of a British nuclear-missile
submarine
must use to determine whether the UK has been the target of a nuclear attack
(in which case he has sealed orders which may authorise him to fire his nuclear missiles in retaliation
), is to listen for the presence of Today on Radio 4's frequencies. If a certain number of days (said to be three) pass without the programme being broadcast, that is to be taken as evidence that the orders must be executed. The true conditions are of course secret, and Hennessy has never revealed his sources for this story, leading Paul Donovan, author of a book about Today, to express some scepticism about it. However, the longwave
signal of Radio 4 is capable of penetrating to surface depths where submarines can rise, although it does not have the range required to be heard at this depth far from the UK's coastal waters.
, Thom Yorke
, Stephen Hawking
, and Norman Tebbit
, who is a frequent critic of the programme. Since its inception, notable guest editors have included: David Blunkett
, who used the programme as an opportunity to 'turn the tables' on John Humphrys
in 2005; Rowan Williams
, the Archbishop of Canterbury
, whose appearance on 29 December 2006 encompassed discussions of his growing concerns about the 'justification' for the invasion of Iraq, Britain's role in the affair, and the consequences for British armed forces; and Peter Hennessy
, who, on 28 December 2007, led a visit to HMS Vigilant
(a British Trident
submarine) alongside its base at Faslane
. The likes of Queen Noor of Jordan (2005), Bono
(2004) and Sarah, Duchess of York
(2004) have also pitched in for this one-day editorial stint to promote their causes and interests.
wrote a column in The Guardian
that was extremely critical of the Countryside Alliance
and which raised questions about his own impartiality. In the article, he wrote that catching "a glimpse of the forces supporting the Countryside Alliance: the public schools that laid on coaches; the fusty, belch-filled dining rooms of the London clubs that opened their doors, for the first time, to the protesters; the Prince of Wales and, of course, Camilla ... and suddenly, rather gloriously, it might be that you remember [why you voted Labour] once again." He eventually resigned from his post on Today.
In the summer of 2003, Today once again found itself at the centre of allegations of political bias, this time against a Labour government. The controversy arose after Today broadcast a report by its correspondent Andrew Gilligan
. The report alleged that a dossier the British Government had produced to convince the British public of the need to invade Iraq
was deliberately exaggerated, and that the government had known this prior to publishing it. In his live 2-way (interview with presenter John Humphrys), just after 6.07 a.m., Gilligan asserted that the Government "probably knew" that one of the main claims in its dossier "was wrong". Gilligan's anonymous source
for the claim was Dr David Kelly, a key adviser on biological weapons who had worked in Iraq - though it was never established whether Dr Kelly had actually used the words Gilligan attributed to him.
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In the furore that followed Gilligan's report, David Kelly's name became public and he was forced to appear before the Foreign Affairs Select Committee. Shortly afterward he was found dead having presumably committed suicide. In the ensuing public inquiry (the Hutton Inquiry
), that reported in January 2004, the BBC was heavily criticised. This led to the resignation of the BBC's Chairman Gavyn Davies
and Director-General (equivalent to Chief Executive), Greg Dyke
; Andrew Gilligan also resigned.
On Friday 5 November 2010, the programme failed to be transmitted due to 48 hour strike action at the BBC. Transmission continued the next day, in spite of ongoing industrial action, as Evan Davis and Sarah Montague
decided to break the strike.Justin Webb
disclosed he would have taken the same action, had he been scheduled to present that day
appeared on the programme to discuss his adapting the Ealing comedy film The Ladykillers
for the West End stage. During this appearance, Linehan took issue with presenter Justin Webb
over what he saw as the attempted staging of an artificial argument between himself and the critic Michael Billington. He later expanded on this criticism in an article in the The Guardian
, saying "I'm talking about that very specific, very artificial, very Today programme format of a presenter acting as referee between two people who have been chosen to represent the opposing sides of a manufactured argument. It is a binary view of politics, of life and, as a result, it is also a dishonest one. Replace it with anything – anything – because anything would be better."
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
's long-running early morning news and current affairs programme, now broadcast from 6.00 am to 9.00 am Monday to Friday, and 7.00 am to 9.00 am on Saturdays. It is also the most popular programme on Radio 4 and one of the BBC's most popular programmes across its radio networks. It consists of regular news bulletins, serious and often confrontational political interviews and in-depth reports, and an often criticised religious slot of 3m 15s. It has been voted the most influential news programme in Britain in setting the political agenda. The programme has 6.6 million listeners. It was voted the Best Breakfast Show of the Year at the 2010 Sony Radio Academy Awards with an average audience of 10 million listeners.
History
Today was launched on the BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's Home Service
BBC Home Service
The BBC Home Service was a British national radio station which broadcast from 1939 until 1967.-Development:Between the 1920s and the outbreak of The Second World War, the BBC had developed two nationwide radio services, the BBC National Programme and the BBC Regional Programme...
on 28 October 1957 as a programme of 'topical talks' to give listeners a morning alternative to light music
Light music
Light music is a generic term applied to a mainly British musical style of "light" orchestral music, which originated in the 19th century and had its heyday during the early to mid part of the 20th century, although arguably it lasts to the present day....
. It was initially broadcast as two 20-minute editions slotted in around the existing news bulletins and religious and musical items. In 1963 it became part of the BBC's Current Affairs department, and it started to become more news-orientated. The two editions also became longer, and by the end of the 1960s it had become a single two-hour long programme that enveloped the news bulletins and the religious talk that had become Thought for the Day
Thought for the Day
Thought for the Day is a daily scripted slot on the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 offering "reflections from a faith perspective on issues and people in the news", broadcast at around 7.45 each Monday to Saturday morning...
. Radio 4 controller Ian McIntyre cut it back to two parts in 1976-1978 (creating a gap which was filled by Up to the Hour
Up to the Hour
Up to the Hour was a programme on BBC Radio 4 that ran from 1977 to 1978. There were two editions each weekday morning, each approximately 30 minutes long and finishing at 7am and 8am respectively...
), but it was swiftly returned to its former position.
Jack de Manio
Jack de Manio
Jack de Manio MC and Bar was a British journalist, best known as a radio presenter....
became its principal presenter in 1958. He was held in affection by listeners, but became notorious for on-air gaffes. In 1970 the programme format was changed so that there were two presenters each day. De Manio left in 1971, and in the late seventies the team of John Timpson
John Timpson
John Harry Robert Timpson OBE, , born in Kenton, Harrow, Middlesex, was a British journalist, best known as a radio presenter. He was educated at Merchant Taylors' School, a boys' independent school in Northwood, London....
and Brian Redhead
Brian Redhead
Brian Leonard Redhead was a British author, journalist and broadcaster. He was probably best known as a co-presenter of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 which he worked on from 1975 until 1993, shortly before his death...
became established.
John Timpson
John Harry Robert Timpson OBE, , born in Kenton, Harrow, Middlesex, was a British journalist, best known as a radio presenter. He was educated at Merchant Taylors' School, a boys' independent school in Northwood, London....
, and from Manchester, usually by Brian Redhead
Brian Redhead
Brian Leonard Redhead was a British author, journalist and broadcaster. He was probably best known as a co-presenter of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 which he worked on from 1975 until 1993, shortly before his death...
. The objective was to make it more of a balanced, national programme. The on-air humour of the two presenters and the split of locations made the programme very popular and influential. Brian Redhead
Brian Redhead
Brian Leonard Redhead was a British author, journalist and broadcaster. He was probably best known as a co-presenter of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 which he worked on from 1975 until 1993, shortly before his death...
was quoted, "If you want to drop a word in the ear of the nation, then this is the programme in which to do it."
This pairing lasted until Timpson's retirement in 1986, when John Humphrys
John Humphrys
Desmond John Humphrys , is a Welsh-born British author, journalist and presenter of radio and television, who has won many national broadcasting awards...
and Sue MacGregor
Sue MacGregor
Susan Katriona MacGregor CBE is a British writer and broadcaster.-Early life:Her parents were Scottish and emigrated to South Africa where she was brought up. Her father was a doctor, a neurologist who was in the British 14th Army in Burma in the Royal Army Medical Corps...
joined the rotating list of presenters (there had been others alongside Redhead and Timpson, including Libby Purves
Libby Purves
Libby Purves OBE is a British radio presenter, journalist and author. A diplomat's daughter, she was educated at convent schools in Israel, Bangkok, South Africa and France, and then Beechwood Sacred Heart School in Tunbridge Wells.Purves won a scholarship to St Anne's College, Oxford, where she...
in the late 1970s). After Redhead's death in January 1994, James Naughtie
James Naughtie
James Naughtie is a British radio presenter and radio news presenter for the BBC. Since 1994 he has been one of the main presenters of Radio 4's Today programme.- Biography :...
became a member of the team. Peter Hobday presented the programme regularly until 1996; Sarah Montague
Sarah Montague
Sarah Montague is a British Journalist, best known for her work on BBC Radio 4 as one of the regular presenters of the Today programme.-Early life:...
replaced MacGregor in 2002. Carolyn Quinn
Carolyn Quinn
Carolyn Quinn is a British journalist best known for her work on BBC Radio 4 as a political correspondent and for presenting the Today programme and PM.-Early life:...
was a regular presenter until 2008 as was Edward Stourton until 2009. Other more occasional presenters include the BBC's Stephen Sackur
Stephen Sackur
Stephen John Sackur is a BBC journalist who presents HARDtalk, a current affairs interview programme on BBC World News and BBC News 24. He is also the main Friday presenter of GMT on BBC World News...
and Tim Franks. Most recently Evan Davis
Evan Davis (journalist)
Evan Harold Davis is a British economist, journalist and presenter for the BBC. In October 2001, Davis took over from Peter Jay as the BBC's economics editor. He left this post in April 2008 to become a presenter on BBC Radio 4's Today programme...
and Justin Webb
Justin Webb
Justin Oliver Webb is a British journalist who has worked for the BBC since 1984. Since August 2009, he has presented on the Today programme.-Early life:...
have joined the roster of regular presenters.
The show reached a peak in terms of influence in the 1980s, when Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
was a noted listener. Ministers thus became keen to go on the programme and be heard by their leader, but the tough, confrontational interviewing style they encountered led to accusations that the BBC was biased. Criticism was particularly directed against Redhead, who was widely seen as being on the left. The style of the male interviewers was analysed and contrasted with that of MacGregor, who was alleged to be giving subjects an easier time. The 'Big 8.10' interview that follows the 8 o'clock news remains an important institution of British politics to this day.
Notable features
Today regularly holds an end-of-year poll. For many years this took the form of write-in votes for the Man and Woman of the Year. This was stopped after an episode of organised vote-rigging in 1990, but was soon revived as a telephone vote for a single Personality of the Year. A further episode of vote-rigging, in favour of Tony BlairTony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
in 1996, forced the programme-makers to consider more innovative polling questions. In 2004 listeners nominated candidates for a peerage
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
, in 2005 the question was set of 'Who Runs Britain?' (though this, too, turned out to be rigged). Recent years have also included nominations for a 'Listener's Law' (which an MP agreed to sponsor as a parliamentary bill, although he did not support the winning nomination, which he thought was not appropriate), and, in 2006, nominations were sought for the law that listeners would most like to see repealed.
In Thought for the Day, featured since 1970, a speaker reflects on topical issues from a theological viewpoint; the editorial responsibility lying with BBC's Religion and Ethics Department (a point often made on the Today Programme). Notable contributors to the slot include Rabbi Lionel Blue
Lionel Blue
Lionel Blue is a British Reform rabbi, journalist and broadcaster. He was the first British rabbi publicly to declare his homosexuality. Born in the East End of London, he was the son of a master tailor....
and Richard Harries, the former Bishop of Oxford
Bishop of Oxford
The Bishop of Oxford is the diocesan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford in the Province of Canterbury; his seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford...
. Over the years the slot has featured an increasing number of speakers from religions other than Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
, though Christian speakers remain in a substantial majority. In August 2002 University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
professor Richard Dawkins
Richard Dawkins
Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL , known as Richard Dawkins, is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and author...
gave a non-religious humanist
Secular humanism
Secular Humanism, alternatively known as Humanism , is a secular philosophy that embraces human reason, ethics, justice, and the search for human fulfillment...
thought for the day; however, this did not replace the regular thought and was broadcast an hour later as an alternative thought.
In 1983 the long-running "Prayer for the Day
Prayer for the Day
Prayer for the Day is a religious radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in the United Kingdom. It comprises a 2 minute reading or prayer and reflection to start the day.-Transmission:...
", which had always gone on air at 6.50am, was moved to 6.25am and replaced by a "Business News" slot.
The programme has a regular slot for sports news and items between 26 and 30 minutes past each hour, presented by Steve May or Garry Richardson
Garry Richardson
Garry Richardson is a British radio presenter. He presents the Sunday morning sports programme Sportsweek on BBC Radio 5 Live and is also a sports presenter on the Today show on BBC Radio 4.-Career:...
. It is an established in-joke that the presenters will pour scorn on the reliability of the programme's racing tipster. If Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
is in session the previous day there will be a summary at about 06:50 (Yesterday in Parliament) presented by two from Robert Orchard
Robert Orchard
Robert Orchard is a British radio journalist and presenter.Robert Orchard was educated at Corpus Christi College, University of Oxford in the 1970s, where he was a member of the Oxford University Broadcasting Society. While at Oxford, he wrote and directed student revues with Rowan Atkinson and...
, David Wilby, Rachel Hooper and Susan Hulme.
Journalist and historian Peter Hennessy
Peter Hennessy
Peter John Hennessy, Baron Hennessy of Nympsfield, FBA is an English historian of government. Since 1992, he has been Attlee Professor of Contemporary British History at Queen Mary, University of London.-Early life:...
has made an assertion, in one of his books, that a test that the commander of a British nuclear-missile
Submarine-launched ballistic missile
A submarine-launched ballistic missile is a ballistic missile capable of delivering a nuclear warhead that can be launched from submarines. Modern variants usually deliver multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles each of which carries a warhead and allows a single launched missile to...
submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
must use to determine whether the UK has been the target of a nuclear attack
Nuclear warfare
Nuclear warfare, or atomic warfare, is a military conflict or political strategy in which nuclear weaponry is detonated on an opponent. Compared to conventional warfare, nuclear warfare can be vastly more destructive in range and extent of damage...
(in which case he has sealed orders which may authorise him to fire his nuclear missiles in retaliation
Letters of last resort
The letters of last resort are four identically-worded, hand written letters written by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom to the four captains of the four British ballistic missile submarines...
), is to listen for the presence of Today on Radio 4's frequencies. If a certain number of days (said to be three) pass without the programme being broadcast, that is to be taken as evidence that the orders must be executed. The true conditions are of course secret, and Hennessy has never revealed his sources for this story, leading Paul Donovan, author of a book about Today, to express some scepticism about it. However, the longwave
Longwave
In radio, longwave refers to parts of radio spectrum with relatively long wavelengths. The term is a historic one dating from the early 20th century, when the radio spectrum was considered to consist of long, medium and short wavelengths...
signal of Radio 4 is capable of penetrating to surface depths where submarines can rise, although it does not have the range required to be heard at this depth far from the UK's coastal waters.
Message boards
In 2001 the Today Programme created a system of message boards allowing the users of its web site to challenge thinking on current affairs with all those contributing. Available statistics indicate the amassing, over five years, of up to 18,000 separate discussions - topic threads - sometimes with as many as 3,000 contributions per thread. However, on 16 November 2006 the programme changed its board policy so that only the producers of Today could start a thread, but all contributors could still join in with them. This action appeared to have been unattractive to past contributors and, it seems, many stopped dealing with Today in favour of other outlets. After the changes there were fewer contributions, but, on occasion, contributions made by the public were featured on-air in the Today programme. Message boards dedicated to the Today Programme were discontinued around mid-2008 and listeners were invited to use the general BBC 'Have Your Say' board.Guest editors
Beginning in 2003, for over one week at the end of December, guest editors have been invited to commission items for one edition of the programme. These usually reflect their social or cultural interests and at the end of each edition the guest editor is interviewed by a member of the regular presenting team about the experience. Guest editors participating in the inaugural year of this feature were Monica AliMonica Ali
Monica Ali is a British writer of Bangladeshi origin. She is the author of Brick Lane, her debut novel, which was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize for Fiction in 2003...
, Thom Yorke
Thom Yorke
Thomas "Thom" Edward Yorke is an English musician who is the lead vocalist and principal songwriter for Radiohead. He mainly plays guitar and piano, but he has also played drums and bass guitar...
, Stephen Hawking
Stephen Hawking
Stephen William Hawking, CH, CBE, FRS, FRSA is an English theoretical physicist and cosmologist, whose scientific books and public appearances have made him an academic celebrity...
, and Norman Tebbit
Norman Tebbit
Norman Beresford Tebbit, Baron Tebbit, CH, PC , is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet from 1981 to 1987 as Secretary of State for Employment...
, who is a frequent critic of the programme. Since its inception, notable guest editors have included: David Blunkett
David Blunkett
David Blunkett is a British Labour Party politician and the Member of Parliament for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough, having represented Sheffield Brightside from 1987 to 2010...
, who used the programme as an opportunity to 'turn the tables' on John Humphrys
John Humphrys
Desmond John Humphrys , is a Welsh-born British author, journalist and presenter of radio and television, who has won many national broadcasting awards...
in 2005; Rowan Williams
Rowan Williams
Rowan Douglas Williams FRSL, FBA, FLSW is an Anglican bishop, poet and theologian. He is the 104th and current Archbishop of Canterbury, Metropolitan of the Province of Canterbury and Primate of All England, offices he has held since early 2003.Williams was previously Bishop of Monmouth and...
, the Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
, whose appearance on 29 December 2006 encompassed discussions of his growing concerns about the 'justification' for the invasion of Iraq, Britain's role in the affair, and the consequences for British armed forces; and Peter Hennessy
Peter Hennessy
Peter John Hennessy, Baron Hennessy of Nympsfield, FBA is an English historian of government. Since 1992, he has been Attlee Professor of Contemporary British History at Queen Mary, University of London.-Early life:...
, who, on 28 December 2007, led a visit to HMS Vigilant
HMS Vigilant (S30)
HMS Vigilant is the third of the Royal Navy. Vigilant carries the Trident ballistic missile, the UK's nuclear deterrent.Vigilant was built at Barrow-in-Furness by Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd , was launched in October 1995, and commissioned in November 1996.Peter Hennessy reporting for...
(a British Trident
Trident missile
The Trident missile is a submarine-launched ballistic missile equipped with multiple independently-targetable reentry vehicles . The Fleet Ballistic Missile is armed with nuclear warheads and is launched from nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines . Trident missiles are carried by fourteen...
submarine) alongside its base at Faslane
HMNB Clyde
Her Majesty's Naval Base Clyde is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy...
. The likes of Queen Noor of Jordan (2005), Bono
Bono
Paul David Hewson , most commonly known by his stage name Bono , is an Irish singer, musician, and humanitarian best known for being the main vocalist of the Dublin-based rock band U2. Bono was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, and attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School where he met his...
(2004) and Sarah, Duchess of York
Sarah, Duchess of York
Sarah, Duchess of York is a British charity patron, spokesperson, writer, film producer, television personality and former member of the British Royal Family. She is the former wife of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, whom she married from 1986 to 1996...
(2004) have also pitched in for this one-day editorial stint to promote their causes and interests.
Controversy
Today found itself in the midst of controversy again in 2002, when its editor Rod LiddleRod Liddle
Roderick E. L. Liddle is an English print, radio, and television journalist.He is an associate editor of The Spectator, and former editor of BBC Radio 4's Today programme, he is the author of Too Beautiful for You , Love Will Destroy Everything , and co-author of The Best of Liddle Britain...
wrote a column in The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
that was extremely critical of the Countryside Alliance
Countryside Alliance
The Countryside Alliance is a British organisation promoting issues relating to the countryside such as country sports, including hunting, shooting and angling...
and which raised questions about his own impartiality. In the article, he wrote that catching "a glimpse of the forces supporting the Countryside Alliance: the public schools that laid on coaches; the fusty, belch-filled dining rooms of the London clubs that opened their doors, for the first time, to the protesters; the Prince of Wales and, of course, Camilla ... and suddenly, rather gloriously, it might be that you remember [why you voted Labour] once again." He eventually resigned from his post on Today.
In the summer of 2003, Today once again found itself at the centre of allegations of political bias, this time against a Labour government. The controversy arose after Today broadcast a report by its correspondent Andrew Gilligan
Andrew Gilligan
Andrew Paul Gilligan is a British journalist best known for a 2003 report on BBC Radio 4's The Today Programme in which he said a British government briefing paper on Iraq and weapons of mass destruction had been 'sexed up', a claim that ultimately led to a public inquiry that criticised Gilligan...
. The report alleged that a dossier the British Government had produced to convince the British public of the need to invade Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
was deliberately exaggerated, and that the government had known this prior to publishing it. In his live 2-way (interview with presenter John Humphrys), just after 6.07 a.m., Gilligan asserted that the Government "probably knew" that one of the main claims in its dossier "was wrong". Gilligan's anonymous source
Journalism sourcing
In journalism, a source is a person, publication, or other record or document that gives timely information. Outside journalism, sources are sometimes known as "news sources"...
for the claim was Dr David Kelly, a key adviser on biological weapons who had worked in Iraq - though it was never established whether Dr Kelly had actually used the words Gilligan attributed to him.
Hutton Inquiry
The Hutton Inquiry was a 2003 judicial inquiry in the UK chaired by Lord Hutton, who was appointed by the Labour government to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of David Kelly, a biological warfare expert and former UN weapons inspector in Iraq.On 18 July 2003, Kelly, an employee...
), that reported in January 2004, the BBC was heavily criticised. This led to the resignation of the BBC's Chairman Gavyn Davies
Gavyn Davies
Gavyn Davies, OBE was the chairman of the BBC from 2001 until 2004, a former Goldman Sachs banker and a former economic advisor to the British Government...
and Director-General (equivalent to Chief Executive), Greg Dyke
Greg Dyke
Gregory "Greg" Dyke is a British media executive, journalist and broadcaster. Since the 1960s, Dyke has a long career in the UK in print and then broadcast journalism. He is credited with introducing 'tabloid' television to British broadcasting, and reviving the ratings of TV-am...
; Andrew Gilligan also resigned.
On Friday 5 November 2010, the programme failed to be transmitted due to 48 hour strike action at the BBC. Transmission continued the next day, in spite of ongoing industrial action, as Evan Davis and Sarah Montague
Sarah Montague
Sarah Montague is a British Journalist, best known for her work on BBC Radio 4 as one of the regular presenters of the Today programme.-Early life:...
decided to break the strike.Justin Webb
Justin Webb
Justin Oliver Webb is a British journalist who has worked for the BBC since 1984. Since August 2009, he has presented on the Today programme.-Early life:...
disclosed he would have taken the same action, had he been scheduled to present that day
Criticism
On 6 June 2011 the comedy writer Graham LinehanGraham Linehan
Graham Linehan is an Irish television writer, actor, comedian and director who, often in partnership with Arthur Mathews, has written or co-written a number of popular television comedies...
appeared on the programme to discuss his adapting the Ealing comedy film The Ladykillers
The Ladykillers
The Ladykillers is a 1955 British black comedy film made by Ealing Studios. Directed by Alexander Mackendrick, it stars Alec Guinness, Cecil Parker, Herbert Lom, Peter Sellers, Danny Green, Jack Warner and Katie Johnson...
for the West End stage. During this appearance, Linehan took issue with presenter Justin Webb
Justin Webb
Justin Oliver Webb is a British journalist who has worked for the BBC since 1984. Since August 2009, he has presented on the Today programme.-Early life:...
over what he saw as the attempted staging of an artificial argument between himself and the critic Michael Billington. He later expanded on this criticism in an article in the The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, saying "I'm talking about that very specific, very artificial, very Today programme format of a presenter acting as referee between two people who have been chosen to represent the opposing sides of a manufactured argument. It is a binary view of politics, of life and, as a result, it is also a dishonest one. Replace it with anything – anything – because anything would be better."
Presenters
- Alan Skempton (1957–1958)
- Jack de ManioJack de ManioJack de Manio MC and Bar was a British journalist, best known as a radio presenter....
(1958–1971) - Robert HudsonRobert Hudson (broadcaster)Robert Cecil Hudson was a broadcaster and administrator for the BBC, primarily on radio but also on television, between 1947 and 1981. He commentated on cricket and rugby union, as well as on many state occasions. He also covered a number of royal tours abroad...
(1964–1968) - John TimpsonJohn TimpsonJohn Harry Robert Timpson OBE, , born in Kenton, Harrow, Middlesex, was a British journalist, best known as a radio presenter. He was educated at Merchant Taylors' School, a boys' independent school in Northwood, London....
(1970–1986) - Robert Robinson (1971–1974)
- Barry NormanBarry NormanBarry Leslie Norman, CBE is a British novelist, impresario, film critic and media personality. He was the BBC film critic on television from 1972 to 1998.-Early life:...
(1974 - 1977?) - Desmond Lynam (1974–1976)
- Brian RedheadBrian RedheadBrian Leonard Redhead was a British author, journalist and broadcaster. He was probably best known as a co-presenter of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 which he worked on from 1975 until 1993, shortly before his death...
(1975–1993) - Nigel ReesNigel ReesNigel Rees is an English author and presenter, best known for devising and hosting the Radio 4 long running panel game Quote.....
(1976–1978) - Libby PurvesLibby PurvesLibby Purves OBE is a British radio presenter, journalist and author. A diplomat's daughter, she was educated at convent schools in Israel, Bangkok, South Africa and France, and then Beechwood Sacred Heart School in Tunbridge Wells.Purves won a scholarship to St Anne's College, Oxford, where she...
(1978–1981) - Jenni MurrayJenni MurrayDame Jennifer Susan "Jenni" Murray, DBE is a British journalist and broadcaster. She attended Barnsley Girls High School and has a degree in French and Drama from Hull University...
(1982–1986)
- Sue MacGregorSue MacGregorSusan Katriona MacGregor CBE is a British writer and broadcaster.-Early life:Her parents were Scottish and emigrated to South Africa where she was brought up. Her father was a doctor, a neurologist who was in the British 14th Army in Burma in the Royal Army Medical Corps...
(1984–2002) - Peter Hobday (1984–1996)
- John HumphrysJohn HumphrysDesmond John Humphrys , is a Welsh-born British author, journalist and presenter of radio and television, who has won many national broadcasting awards...
(1987 - ) - Anna FordAnna FordAnna Ford is a retired English journalist and television presenter, best known as a newsreader....
(1986? - 1997?) - James NaughtieJames NaughtieJames Naughtie is a British radio presenter and radio news presenter for the BBC. Since 1994 he has been one of the main presenters of Radio 4's Today programme.- Biography :...
(1994 - ) - Edward Stourton (1999–2009)
- Sarah MontagueSarah MontagueSarah Montague is a British Journalist, best known for her work on BBC Radio 4 as one of the regular presenters of the Today programme.-Early life:...
(2002 - ) - Carolyn QuinnCarolyn QuinnCarolyn Quinn is a British journalist best known for her work on BBC Radio 4 as a political correspondent and for presenting the Today programme and PM.-Early life:...
(2004 - 2008) - Evan DavisEvan Davis (journalist)Evan Harold Davis is a British economist, journalist and presenter for the BBC. In October 2001, Davis took over from Peter Jay as the BBC's economics editor. He left this post in April 2008 to become a presenter on BBC Radio 4's Today programme...
(2007 - ) - Justin WebbJustin WebbJustin Oliver Webb is a British journalist who has worked for the BBC since 1984. Since August 2009, he has presented on the Today programme.-Early life:...
(2009 - )
Editors
- Isa Benzie (Senior Producer) (1957)
- Elizabeth Rowley (Producer in Charge) (1957)
- Janet Quigley (Chief Assistant, Talks) (1957)
- Stephen Bonarjee (1960s)
- Peter Redhouse (1960s?)
- Alistair Osborne (1960s/1970s?)
- Mike Chaney (1976–1978)
- Ken Goudie (1978–1981)
- Julian Holland (1981–1986)
- Jenny AbramskyJenny AbramskyDame Jennifer Gita Abramsky, DBE is chairman of the UK's National Heritage Memorial Fund . The NHMF makes grants to preserve heritage of outstanding national importance. Until her retirement from the BBC Jenny Abramsky was its most senior woman employee; she was Director of Audio and Music...
(1986–1987) - Phil HardingPhil Harding (BBC executive)Phil Harding is a journalist, broadcaster and media consultant. Previously he was a producer, editor and senior executive at the BBC.He is a Trustee of the Press Association and of the One World Broadcasting Trust. He is a Fellow of the Society of Editors and of the Radio Academy.At the BBC, Phil...
(1987–1993) - Roger MoseyRoger MoseyRoger Mosey is a British broadcasting executive who is currently working as the BBC's Director of London 2012 Olympic Games coverage....
(1993–1997) - Jon Barton (1997–1998)
- Rod LiddleRod LiddleRoderick E. L. Liddle is an English print, radio, and television journalist.He is an associate editor of The Spectator, and former editor of BBC Radio 4's Today programme, he is the author of Too Beautiful for You , Love Will Destroy Everything , and co-author of The Best of Liddle Britain...
(1998–2002) - Kevin MarshKevin Marsh-Early life:He was born in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, in 1954 to John and Elizabeth Jill Marsh. He attended Doncaster Grammar School from 1966-73 and became Captain of School, as well as Captain of Cricket. He read Classics and English at Christ Church, Oxford and gained an MA in 1978. He also...
(2002–2006) - Ceri Thomas (2006 - )
See also
- Greatest Painting in Britain VoteGreatest Painting in Britain VoteThe Greatest Painting in Britain Vote was a survey made by BBC Radio 4's Today programme in Summer 2005 with the aim of discovering the best-loved painting in Britain, in the manner of 100 Greatest Britons, The Big Read and the Mona Joe...
, a Today listener poll in 2005. - PMPM (Radio 4)PM, sometimes referred to as the PM programme to avoid ambiguity, is BBC Radio 4's long-running early evening news and current affairs programme.-Broadcast times:...
, Radio 4's early evening stablemate to the Today Programme. - The World At OneThe World At OneThe World at One, or WATO for short, is BBC Radio 4's long-running lunchtime news and current affairs programme, which is broadcast from 1pm to 1:30pm from Monday to Friday. The programme describes itself as "Britain's leading political programme. With a reputation for rigorous and original...
, Radio 4's afternoon stablemate to the Today Programme. - The World TonightThe World TonightThe World Tonight is a British current affairs radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4, every weekday evening, which started out as an extension of the 10pm news. It features news, analysis and comment on domestic and world issues...
, Radio 4's late evening stablemate to the Today Programme.
External links
- Official website
- All Our Todays: Forty Years of Radio 4's "Today" Programme. Book review
- Brian Redhead : obituary
- The Secret State: Whitehall and the Cold War, 1945-1970. Book review
- Thought for the Day official site
- Alastair Osborne - Daily Telegraph obituary
- The Today Programme - Review and analysis at the Journalism Now! project