March 20, 2009 by dafyd
…his face is permanently blurred to protect his identity.
Google Maps launched its Streetview service in the UK yesterday, and some intrepid sightseers have already found the Stig at the BBC’s White City offices. Fun.
Also Nottingham High School, on a rare “not rainy” day:
Oh, and Wally on Putney High Street:
Category 1 | Tags: bbc,google,maps,nottingham,school,stig,topgear,tv | Comments Off
February 25, 2009 by dafyd
This BBC headline confused me for a few moments:
I didn’t think turkeys were flightless (wild, they’re not), so why the plane? Images of Chicken Run came to mind…
Bad bit of journalese there, I think. Not a great idea to associate plasticine poultry with a plane crash, however unintentionally.
Update: The BBC has updated the title to “Jet crashes…” – much clearer.
Category 1 | Tags: bbc,chickenrun,crash,journalists,language,news | Comments Off
December 6, 2008 by dafyd
The BBC homepage at 2.15 this afternoon…
Category 1 | Tags: bbc,news,oops | Comments Off
August 10, 2008 by dafyd
I’ve had my shiny new iPhone 3G for four weeks now, and while I love everything about it, I can’t help but feel that there’s more that it could be doing…
Fortunately, Apple has enabled users of the iPhone to download additional applications for the phone through the App Store, which works very much like the iTunes Music Store, except that instead of downloading music you’re downloading full-blown programmes to provide extra functionality.
Of the dozen-or-so that I’ve downloaded so far, the Facebook app is probably the one I use most, providing (almost) all the functionality of the website in a quick, shiny, touch-optimised interface. The Google app ties in nicely with the GPS functions of the phone to keep search results relevant to where you are (a search for “pizza” finds your nearest takeaway), for example. NetNewsWire does exactly what the Mac application does (or it did, until the latest iPhone firmware update killed it – a fix is in the pipeline).
I love the Apple Remote app, which lets me control iTunes on my Mac/PC from anywhere in the house. Last.fm provides me with a huge number of streaming songs, based on my listening history, with which to supplement my iPod playlists. Shazam does what it has been doing for years, identifying music based on a few seconds of it – perfect for pub quizzes…! The TubeStatus app will doubtless come in useful the next time I’m in London.
Did I mention that all of these apps were free? There are, of course, others that cost, including a few fairly decent games, but I’m happy with what I’ve got. Almost.
I can think of a few things I’d like my iPhone to do for me that it doesn’t at the moment:
If any of these already exist in the App Store and I’ve missed them, feel free to point me in their direction…
Category 1 | Tags: apple,bbc,iphone,mac,phone,radio | 4 Comments
August 10, 2008 by dafyd
Also, now that the BBC has its embeddable media player working, any chance of embedding full iPlayer programmes on external sites? Can’t be long…
Category 1 | Tags: bbc,britainfromabove,iplayer | Comments Off
June 28, 2008 by dafyd
According to this week’s Doctor Who, the Doctor’s phone number is 07700 900 461.
Alas, “The number you have called has not been recognized”. BBC, you disappoint me. Why feature the number so prominently (full screen, at least three times) if it doesn’t do anything? Would it really have been that difficult to put a recording of David Tennant at the end of the phone?
Somehow, I think next week it may prove important…
Update: Seems the number falls within the range of numbers reserved by Ofcom “for drama purposes”. Pity.
Still can’t work out what happened last night. I have a vague feeling that the idea of them being “one second in the future” will be important, as will the Doctor’s spare hand. And I wager John Simm (The Master) may make a return… after all, we’ve seen everyone else.
Category 1 | Tags: bbc,doctorwho,tv | Comments Off
April 2, 2008 by dafyd
Not entirely sure what’s going on here… but it’s worth a watch.
Sergey Brin, utterly bemused, in the background – quality.
Category 1 | Tags: bbc,comedy,debate,iplayer,robinwilliams,video | Comments Off
April 1, 2008 by dafyd
When the BBC decides to do an April Fools joke, they don’t take any shortcuts. This new trail for the iPlayer, for example: Terry Jones discovers flying penguins in Antarctica.
Beautifully shot, seamless CGI, tongue firmly in cheek. A true successor to the legendary spaghetti trees. I love the confused toucan.
Even better, I think someone at the Telegraph may have had a sense of humour bypass and is reporting the penguins as actual news… EDIT: nope, it seems to be a joke shared by the Beeb, the Telegraph and (bizarrely) the Mirror, who went a bit far with the joke (the last paragraph spoils it somewhat, I think).
(If you’re outside the UK, you won’t be able to see the iPlayer video linked above – try this mirror at YouTube or this one, also at YouTube).
Category 1 | Tags: aprilfools,bbc,penguin | Comments Off
January 29, 2008 by dafyd
Oh yes:
You need the free Macromedia Flash Player to watch this video. Download it here.
If you’re reading this in a feedreader, or in Facebook or the like, you’ll have to click through to the actual post. Make sure you do, though – it’s awesome.
Thursday 7 February 2008, 9.00pm, BBC One. Be there.
Category 1 | Tags: ashestoashes,bbc,tv,video | Comments Off
October 29, 2007 by dafyd
Now, despite my natural aversion to, and deep-set loathing of, Jeremy Clarkson, I think you’d be hard-pushed to find any better televisual entertainment for a Sunday evening than Top Gear.
And yesterday’s episode was, to put it mildly, awesome. Not only did we have the much anticipated (and, again, awesome) head-to-head race between a Bugatti Veyron and, umm, a EuroFighter (best drag race ever – watch it), we had this bit:
You need the free Macromedia Flash Player to watch this video. Download it here.
If you’re reading this in a feedreader, or in Facebook or the like, you’ll have to click through to the actual post. Make sure you do, though – it’s possibly the best thing you’ll see this week.
John “Newsreaders are not entertainers” Humphrys – legend!
Category 1 | Tags: bbc,cars,jeremyclarkson,johnhumphrys,topgear | 1 Comment