BBC TV licence is a 'rip off', say 64 per cent of British viewers



More than six in ten people think the BBC's TV licence fee is a 'rip off', according to a poll.

Asked whether the £139.50 licence fee was good value for money, 64 per cent of people chose the answer 'No it's a rip off'.

Just 10 per cent of people chose 'Yes', while 24 per cent chose 'Just about but they could do a bit more'.

The poll of 2,062 adults across the country was carried out by market research company YouGov for The People newspaper.

The BBC was criticised for the obscene phone calls affair involving Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand

The BBC has recently come under intense pressure over failures in editorial judgment.

The corporation is facing an investigation by regulator Ofcom over the obscene phone calls affair involving Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand.

Ross was suspended for three months without pay and Brand resigned after the pair left obscene messages on Fawlty Towers actor Andrew Sachs' answerphone.

Asked whether the affair was handled properly, 36 per cent chose the answer 'Too little was done', 43 per cent chose 'Harder action should have been taken' and 17 per cent said 'It was blown out of proportion'.

Over a third of viewers said they were 'sick of' reality TV programmes like Big Brother, X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing

And asked to choose two or three programmes from a list of seven which they would prefer to watch, more people opted for old favourites The Two Ronnies (49 per cent), Morecambe and Wise (46 per cent) and Michael Parkinson (40 per cent) than Jonathan Ross (26 per cent).

Reality shows were also in the firing line, with 36 per cent of people saying they were 'sick of' programmes like Big Brother, X Factor and Strictly Come Dancing.

Some 32 per cent said there were 'too many' such shows and just nine per cent said the programmes were among their favourites.

The cost of the licence fee, set by the Government, is £139.50 for a colour television - less than £12 a month or about 38p a day.

It is free for people over 75 and half-price for those registered blind.

A BBC spokeswoman said: 'In-depth research has shown us a very different picture.

'Audiences are telling us that they are really enjoying our shows at the moment, everything from Strictly Come Dancing to Terry Wogan and Children In Need.

'We do realise we have to work very hard to constantly demonstrate that we are using licence payers' money wisely.'

In a survey of more than 4,500 people by research company Ipsos Mori published in June more than half of respondents rated the BBC an eight out of 10 or higher. Just eight per cent awarded them four out of 10 or less.

Ofcom is conducting a review into the future of public service broadcasting and how programmes should be funded.