FEATURE:
Sounds and Visions
IMAGE CREDIT: BBC
Creating a Central Hub for BBC Podcasts, Shows and Videos
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THIS is going to be a short one…
IN THIS PHOTO: Fearne Cotton/PHOTO CREDIT: Stephanie Sian Smith/Kintzing
but the point of this article is not just an issue reserved to the BBC. The Sounds section of their website is great. I also love the music options that you can get on the iPlayer, in terms of documentaries and shows. Fearne Cotton’s Sounds of the 90s turned one recently. This is a show that provides some much-needed nostalgia for those who were around in the 1990s. To be fair, one can spend a lot of time navigating Sounds and checking out all the great stuff that is on there. I am bringing this up for a couple of reasons. I love Cotton’s series but, as I am a little late the party, I have not heard many of the earliest episodes. I know they are repeated on Sounds but, like all new episodes, one can listen for about a month and then they disappear. Maybe it is a cost thing but, at a time when so many of us are relying on podcasts, radio and great video, I do wonder whether there could be a central hub or website where all of the shows could go. I am not sure whether Sounds of the 90s with Fearne Cotton will be repeated in-full and all the episodes will be made available at a later date. The same goes for Top of the Pops and great music television shows. I have written about that before and why we can only see a few episodes on the BBC iPlayer.
Like Later… with Jools Holland, having that archive material would be brilliant! Holland’s show is still going, yet there are some great performances in the vaults through the years that I would love to revisit. If it is an issue of space, I wonder whether a website could be created. BBC Radio 6 Music had its yearly festival last week. It was different this year, whereby there were archive performances and some specially-recorded sets. I am not sure how much of the previous festivals is available on the BBC Radio 6 Music website. I love classic Glastonbury performances and, as we miss live music and are not sure exactly when it is coming back, having an arsenal of great live material from Glastonbury, festivals and shows like Top of the Pops would lift many people. The Sounds app and site is full of great stuff and, with limited room, they have to make way. I am not sure of the exact reason behind the thirty-day storage time, though one suspects that it is to do with costing a lot of money. I love how there is a load of new stuff on there but, for those who want to go back through the locker and listen to older podcasts and watch some shows that were new month ago, being able to access these for an unlimited time is a dream. I am not sure whether it is possible at all or too costly. Even if it were BBC-centric, it could be organised so that you could search for podcasts and shows and have all the episodes.
Either that or there would be categories so that a series like Later… with Jools Holland would come under ‘Music T.V.’. A podcast like Sounds of the 90s with Fearne Cotton could be ‘Music Podcasts’, and there would be menus whereby you could get the latest episodes and go as far back as possible. It is the live music side of things that would prove particularly enriching and popular. Having T.V. show performances and Glastonbury sets; some live videos that are not available on YouTube. Perhaps it would be a case of moving a lot of this onto YouTube but, if there were no huge costs involved and the logistics were not too head-spinning, it would be more logical to combine everything to one site. Taking advantage of the wonderful music, podcasts and shows available has really kept away the boredom. It has been a bummer missing the start of great series or not being able to get on top of everything that I would enjoy. I am sure there are some podcasts and documentaries that would be fantastic but, with so much on offer, it can be challenging getting on top of everything! A new website could make it easier to search or make more suggestions regarding the stuff I/people would enjoy (I know BBC Sounds does that, but this would mix audio and visual into one). The combination of historical series, the best new audio and live music in a portal/hub that is always being updated would be…
PHOTO CREDIT: Mother Design
A bonanza for music fans.