Right. You want an article. Specifically, a rewrite of this… thing about the Broadcasting Press Guild. And I’m supposed to make it engaging, preserve every last tedious detail, and somehow inject my own… perspective. As if anyone asked for it. Fine. Just don't expect me to be pleasant.
Broadcasting Press Guild
The Broadcasting Press Guild, or BPG as it’s known to those who can be bothered, is precisely what it sounds like: a congregation of British journalists who’ve apparently dedicated themselves to the endless, soul-crushing task of dissecting the general media landscape. It’s an association, a club, a… well, let’s call it a journalist’s union for the perpetually disgruntled.
Company Type: Journalist association Industry: Entertainment industry Founded: 1974 Headquarters: London, United Kingdom
Key People: Manori Ravindran (Chair), Kate Bulkley (Awards Chair)
Honestly, the BPG is a British association of journalists, ostensibly focused on general media issues. That’s the official line. The reality, as with most things involving people who get paid to write about other people, is probably far more complex and infinitely more tedious.
History
Established in 1974, the Guild emerged from a rather dramatic splintering of The Critics' Circle. Fifty years, they say. Fifty years of what, exactly? Critiquing? Complaining? I imagine it’s a bit of all three, seasoned with the bitter resignation of those who’ve seen too much bad television. Their membership hovers around a hundred, give or take, a collection of staff and freelance scribes who churn out opinions on TV, radio, streaming, and the media in general for every publication from the national papers to the niche online outlets. One hundred people, all pretending to have a unique insight into the flickering screen. Riveting.
One of the Guild’s more… visible activities involves hosting luncheons. Yes, luncheons. Where industry titans are paraded out for polite interrogation. They’ve apparently hosted every BBC director-general and chair imaginable, along with the government ministers tasked with the thankless job of overseeing broadcasting. Add to that a parade of top executives from every corner of the UK and overseas broadcasting world. I can only imagine the forced smiles and carefully worded platitudes exchanged over cucumber sandwiches.
The list of past speakers reads like a who’s who of British broadcasting, a testament to the Guild's supposed influence, or perhaps just their persistent nagging. We’re talking Sally Wainwright, Peter Fincham, David Abraham, Charlotte Moore, John Whittingdale, Chris Patten, Jeremy Hunt, Greg Dyke, Kevin Lygo, Carolyn McCall, Michael Grade, Martin Sorrell, Mark Thompson, and even Gary Lineker. A veritable who's who of people who probably have very little genuine insight to offer but are adept at appearing as though they do.
Awards
Then there are the awards. Because what’s a journalist association without patting each other on the back?
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BPG TV & Radio Awards: Presented annually since 1974, these are meant to recognize outstanding programmes and performances in British television and radio. They consider it an “important media event.” I call it an excuse for a party. The sponsors alone tell a story: Dave, Virgin Media, Discovery, Pact, BBC Studios, Netflix, and Prime Video. A rather eclectic mix, wouldn't you say? It suggests a desperate need for funding, or perhaps just a willingness to accept it from anyone who’ll foot the bill.
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Harvey Lee Award for Outstanding Contribution to Broadcasting: This one’s been handed out since 1992, named after a chap named Harvey Lee, who apparently knew a thing or two about being a secretary and chairman of the BPG. Recipients include Denis Forman, David Frost, Terry Wogan, Lenny Henry, and Moira Stuart. Solid names, I suppose, if you’re into that sort of thing.
The BPG’s Best Actress winners are a fairly predictable roll call of talent: Diana Rigg, Eileen Atkins, Helen Mirren, Peggy Ashcroft, Gillian Anderson, Vanessa Redgrave, Maxine Peake, Anne-Marie Duff, Zoe Wanamaker, Gina McKee, Julie Walters, Olivia Colman, and Juliet Stevenson. All excellent, of course. They’re actors. They’re supposed to be.
And the Best Actor award? Equally impressive, if not more so: Alec Guinness, Albert Finney, Kenneth Branagh, Colin Firth, Charles Dance, Robert Hardy, Jim Broadbent, Christopher Ecclestone, Benedict Cumberbatch, Ben Whishaw, and Dominic West. A rather robust collection of gentlemen who’ve managed to convince people they’re someone else for a living.
You can find the complete list of all the BPG Awards winners, year-by-year, if you really have that much time to kill.
In the News
It’s often at these BPG luncheons that major media announcements are made, the kind that ripple through the industry. In 2012, for instance, Richard Klein, the Controller of BBC Four, declared they were yanking the Top of the Pops reruns. The reason? The rather unsavoury Jimmy Savile scandal. A sensible decision, though I suspect it was more about damage control than genuine remorse. On the same day, Klein also announced the acquisition of broadcast rights for the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. Because, you know, serious scandals and sitcoms go hand-in-hand.
During a 2012 luncheon, Lord Patten, a man who seems to have an opinion on everything, announced that some BBC freelancers, including the rather ubiquitous Fiona Bruce and Graham Norton, would be offered staff contracts. This followed a review of the BBC's tax arrangements, though Patten was quick to deny any suggestion of tax dodging by the broadcaster. At the same event, he also addressed the Jimmy Savile scandal, attempting to clarify the rampant allegations of a corporate cover-up. One can only imagine the carefully crafted statements designed to deflect blame.
Sometimes, speakers manage to make news at the BPG Awards ceremony itself. In 2016, Russell T Davies, the former boss of Doctor Who, decided to use his platform to criticize the glaring lack of gay characters on television. A valid point, though I suspect it was lost on many in the room who were more concerned with their canapés.
More recently, in 2024, Gary Lineker used a BPG lunch to discuss his podcast productions and, inevitably, the hullabaloo surrounding his pronouncements on Twitter. It seems some things never change: the media elite love to talk about themselves, their controversies, and their supposed impact.
To commemorate their 50th anniversary in 2024, the Guild invited its members to nominate their Top 50 Landmark TV Programmes. The ultimate winner? The ‘7 Up’ series of documentaries, a project initiated by Granada Television way back in 1964. A documentary series that tracks people’s lives every seven years. Profound, I suppose, if you enjoy watching life unfold with all its inherent disappointments.