Latest news with #MissUK
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Dear Tim Davie, here are 10 easy ways to get Reform voters to watch the BBC
Yikes! Panic stations at Broadcasting House as it occurs to the BBC high-ups that those ghastly, knuckle-dragging Farage fans might be more popular than in their worst nightmares. So sealed off from mainstream opinion is the BBC Bubble that, until now, the rise of Reform UK has been dismissed as some kind of unfortunate smell which can safely be dispersed if presenters just keep treating Reform spokespeople as if they are enemy spies brought in for interrogation, not democratically elected men and women who speak for millions. The corporation's lofty condescension to those uppity plebs was summed up by a BBC Politics tweet which described the newly-elected Reform UK Mayor of Greater Lincolnshire, Dame Andrea Jenkyns, as 'the former Greggs worker and Miss UK finalist'. Never mind that she'd also been a Conservative MP and minister. Mind you, give me a Greggs worker and beauty queen over the coldly supercilious Naga Munchetty any day. BBC staff are quick to complain about 'misogyny' unless the target is someone they consider to be 'far-Right' and almost certainly Brexity (Eeuw!) in which case all feminist sensitivities are off. That snobbish, snide remark about the force that is Dame Andrea provoked a huge backlash, quite rightly, and the BBC hastily removed the tweet saying, 'We acknowledge the tone of the post was wrong, and it has been taken down'. Still, they had revealed their true colours – Rayner Red and Lib Dem Yellow – and they weren't pretty. Now – oh, joy! – we are told the BBC is holding talks about how to win over Reform-voting viewers amid fears their views are 'under-represented by the broadcaster'. You don't say! I reckon many Reform supporters have already cancelled their licence fees in disgust. Still, to appeal to any that remain, senior executives including director-general Tim Davie and chair Samir Shah are said to have discussed plans to overhaul the BBC's news and drama output to tackle 'low-trust issues' among Reform voters. Deborah Turness, BBC News boss, apparently briefed the broadcaster's board on how to ensure the views of Reformers were being given enough airtime. The BBC is understood to be keen to ensure it represents all audiences and their concerns, suggesting the broadcaster may seek to boost its coverage of issues such as immigration. Well, that's a first. I can count on the fingers of one hand the occasions when the BBC has suggested that immigration is anything other than an unmitigated joy or treated anyone arguing to cut numbers as anything other than some racist pariah. I still remember the pained wince of Laura Kuenssberg when Kemi Badenoch confirmed that she did indeed believe that not all cultures are equally valid – 'cultures that believe in child marriage?' quipped the Tory leader devastatingly. A number of key BBC presenters may need to be sedated before being required to challenge their own faith in open borders and slavish loyalty to the EU. Why, you might ask, has it taken the prospect (um, threat) of a Reform government to make our supposedly national broadcaster feel it has to make sure that all viewers' experiences and backgrounds are portrayed on screen? Well, while Reform has not said it would scrap the BBC licence fee, it believes it is 'not sustainable' in its current form. Playing nice with a future prime minister Farage may stick in the craw, but the Beeb don't have much choice but to swallow hard. If the BBC is serious, here are my top 10 tips for Reform-friendly programming: In anything. Literally anything and everything. Call The Midwife, Springwatch, sewing contests, anchoring News at Ten, chairing Question Time. Clarkson's Farm on Amazon Prime is rightly adored for its host's no-nonsense style and contempt for fashionable pieties. Peak Reform! Best of all for attracting Nigel fans, restore Top Gear with the original, irrepressible cast of petrolheads. Clarkson once said the most British saying of all was, 'Oh, for God's sake.' He speaks directly to Reform voters. No need to sack Gary Lineker (a Reform imperative if Mr Gaza hadn't already stepped down!), but the BBC could help restore national pride and joy by buying the rights to broadcast all England Test matches. Many Reform voters are older and may struggle to afford a Sky subscription just to watch the game they love. The national broadcaster should be broadcasting our nation's sports. After the woke ratings disaster of Ncuti Gatwa's Doctor Who, this cult show is on death row. Former doctor's companion Billie Piper is rumoured to be lined up to be the second female Doctor. A better idea would be to cast Piper's former husband Laurence Fox. As well as possessing the ideal hectic energy, dancing wit and sonorous delivery for the role, Fox was cancelled and lost his acting career after appearing on Question Time, where he said that Britain was not racist. It was, he insisted, the warmest, most welcoming and tolerant country on Earth. A belief which is pretty much universally shared by Reform voters. Uncancelling Fox would be proof of the BBC's new openness to views it finds uncomfortable as well as giving that endangered acting species – the posh white male – a role he would undoubtedly make his own. While you're at it, drop the relentless diversity casting of BBC drama. It's patronising and silly. This may come as a shock, but there are actually some police officers in the UK who are not married to a spouse from an ethnic minority – not that you'd know it from watching every single thriller or police procedural. Viewers – both Reform voters and others – would occasionally like to see the country they live in accurately represented, not as it is viewed by a producer who lives in on-trend east London. BBC News bulletins to feature subjects discussed down the pub not by non-binary Marxist postgraduates called Umberto in Broadcasting House, e.g. our energy bills are horrendous and net zero is clearly madness. Maybe occasionally suggest that it's 'green taxes' not the 'war in Ukraine' which is giving Britain the highest energy bills in the developed world. It's what Reform voters believe after all. Every time a journalist uses the term 'far-Right' they must also use 'far-Left' (which, mysteriously, we never hear on the BBC). ie the 'far-Left' Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner. To be stated every time the war with Israel is mentioned, and no equivocation. An ambitious new factual history series which travels back into our nation's past and discovers, astonishingly, that Britons weren't always the biggest bastards imaginable. Headliners, the just-cancelled GB News late-night comic news review show, to go out at 11pm on BBC Two. An unfamiliar, Right-wingish slant on current events. Reform voters will love. Do please tell me your suggestions for a Reform-friendly BBC in the comments below. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
BBC under fire over ‘snide' description of new Reform mayor Andrea Jenkyns
The BBC has come under fire for a 'snide' tweet about a newly elected Reform UK mayor. The organisation's BBC Politics account referred to Reform's Dame Andrea Jenkyns, the new mayor of Greater Lincolnshire, as 'the former Greggs worker and Miss UK finalist' in a tweet about her 'return to politics'. James Cleverly, the former foreign secretary, called the message 'contemptible'. In a scathing criticism of the broadcaster's tweet, he wrote: 'She's a former MP and minister. There are genuine questions about how she'll deliver on Reform's vague promises, or deal with Farage's ego now she has elected power and he doesn't, etc. 'But this is just snide. @BBCPolitics should delete and apologise.' The tweet, which was published on Friday morning and had more than 775,000 views by 4pm, received backlash from other X users, including one who labelled it 'bitter' and another who said it was 'misogynistic'. Another responded: 'More pompous, supercilious reporting from @BBC. Pure intellectual snobbery from an increasingly self-important organisation.' Helen Joyce, the author and gender-critical activist, highlighted the BBC's own impartiality rules. She said: 'Whoever wrote this tweet and signed it off should be put through disciplinary. They can keep their political opinions to themselves while they're at work at the state broadcaster, which has a duty not to be partisan.' Dame Andrea, a former minister, was a Tory MP from 2015 until last year, when she finished second to Labour in the seat of Leeds South West and Morley in the general election. She then joined Reform in November. Last year, Dame Andrea said that leaving the Conservative Party was 'not an easy decision,' but added: 'The ship is sinking and perhaps, sadly, beyond salvage but enough is enough. 'It is time to step aboard a movement with vision and purpose and the courage to fight for Britain's future.' In her victory speech on Friday, after beating her nearest rival by almost 40,000 votes, Dame Andrea declared that it was a 'new dawn in British politics' and vowed Reform would 'reset Britain to its glorious past'. In the BBC article about her win, she was described as the 'former Greggs worker and Miss UK finalist' who had 'a remarkable political comeback'. The broadcaster has been contacted by The Telegraph for comment. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
BBC under fire over ‘snide' description of new Reform mayor Andrea Jenkyns
The BBC has come under fire for a 'snide' tweet about a newly elected Reform UK mayor. The organisation's BBC Politics account referred to Reform's Dame Andrea Jenkyns, the new mayor of Greater Lincolnshire, as 'the former Greggs worker and Miss UK finalist' in a tweet about her 'return to politics'. James Cleverly, the former foreign secretary, called the message 'contemptible'. In a scathing criticism of the broadcaster's tweet, he wrote: 'She's a former MP and minister. There are genuine questions about how she'll deliver on Reform's vague promises, or deal with Farage's ego now she has elected power and he doesn't, etc. 'But this is just snide. @BBCPolitics should delete and apologise.' The tweet, which was published on Friday morning and had more than 775,000 views by 4pm, received backlash from other X users, including one who labelled it 'bitter' and another who said it was 'misogynistic'. Another responded: 'More pompous, supercilious reporting from @BBC. Pure intellectual snobbery from an increasingly self-important organisation.' Helen Joyce, the author and gender-critical activist, highlighted the BBC's own impartiality rules. She said: 'Whoever wrote this tweet and signed it off should be put through disciplinary. They can keep their political opinions to themselves while they're at work at the state broadcaster, which has a duty not to be partisan.' Dame Andrea, a former minister, was a Tory MP from 2015 until last year, when she finished second to Labour in the seat of Leeds South West and Morley in the general election. She then joined Reform in November. Last year, Dame Andrea said that leaving the Conservative Party was 'not an easy decision,' but added: 'The ship is sinking and perhaps, sadly, beyond salvage but enough is enough. 'It is time to step aboard a movement with vision and purpose and the courage to fight for Britain's future.' In her victory speech on Friday, after beating her nearest rival by almost 40,000 votes, Dame Andrea declared that it was a 'new dawn in British politics' and vowed Reform would 'reset Britain to its glorious past'. In the BBC article about her win, she was described as the 'former Greggs worker and Miss UK finalist' who had 'a remarkable political comeback'.
ITV News
02-05-2025
- Politics
- ITV News
From Greggs, to Miss UK stage and Grimsby Town Hall: Who's Reform's first mayor Andrea Jenkyns?
Dame Andrea Jenkyns has been elected as Reform UK 's first-ever mayor. In her victory speech, Jenkyns vowed there would be 'an end to soft touch Britain' and declared it was a "new dawn in British politics". Dame Andrea has certainly worn many different hats - from working at Greggs after leaving school at 16, to reaching the final of Miss UK at 18, to a political career spanning local authorities, Parliament and two parties. But who is she, and what shaped the former Conservative minister's return to politics? Time with the Tories Jenkyns' political career began at Lincolnshire County Council, where she was elected in 2009 - a seat she later lost to UKIP. But 2015 saw her political career gain momentum, beating Labour's Ed Balls to the Morley and Outwood constituency, a seat she ended up holding for nine years. A staunch supporter of Brexit and Boris Johnson, Jenkyns submitted no-confidence letters in both former prime ministers, Theresa May and Rishi Sunak. Under the Johnson administration, she was appointed assistant whip in September 2021 before becoming an education minister in July 2022. But shortly after she took up her new job, she sparked outrage when she flipped her middle finger at the public outside Downing Street as she was en route to watch Johnson's resignation speech. Her actions were met with outrage from teachers' leaders after footage of the incident circulated on social media. In response, she claimed a 'baying mob outside the gates were insulting MPs on their way in" - something that "is sadly too common,' she added. She was reappointed in the role by Liz Truss that September, who she endorsed in the party leadership election, but remained part of the cabinet for only 49 days and left after Rishi Sunak became the new prime minister. Shift to Reform UK In the run up to the election, she was forced to defend using a picture of herself and Nigel Farage on her campaign leaflet. Standing by her choice, she said: "All conservatives must be prepared to come together to prevent a socialist supermajority and the end of Britain as we know it." However, Dame Andrea was voted out of her constituency of Leeds South West and Morley in last year's general election, losing to Labour MP Mark Sewards. She then defected from the Conservative party to Reform UK in November 2024. Describing her former party as "tired", she claimed to be "politically aligned" with Nigel Farage. Jenkyns will now oversee a £24 million budget and influence areas such as transport, regeneration and housing. ITV News' Political Correspondent Shehab Khan, who has been watching events unfold from North Lincolnshire, said: "Her election as the first Mayor of Greater Lincolnshire now offers a revealing opportunity to see how Reform governs in practice. "One member of the shadow cabinet summed up their mood with a pointed remark: 'Let's see how they get on when there's actual work to do'."
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
When Jenkyns looks astute, British politics proves it really is in a dire state
She famously presented her middle finger to a bunch of protesters outside Downing Street. So it says a lot about the state of Britain that Dame Andrea Jenkyns looks like our most astute politician. But who could argue otherwise this morning, as she starts her term as Greater Lincolnshire mayor? What a turnaround for someone who, until now, has hardly distinguished herself. Okay, she's got a colourful past as a Miss UK finalist, Greggs worker and victor over Ed Balls in 2015. But in her early days in Parliament, she was best known as a troublemaker for Theresa May. The highest office she held was a parliamentary under secretary of state at the end of Boris Johnson's leadership. She was then booted out by Rishi Sunak, and finally lost her seat by a big margin at the general election. But my goodness, she's made up for it all since. Jumping ship from Tories to Reform at exactly the right time, announcing her candidacy for Greater Lincolnshire late last year, catching a glorious wave and leaving the Tories trailing in her wake. When she said this morning that 'Nigel Farage will one day make a magnificent Prime Minister', it might have sent a shiver down the spine of many. But few laughed. Imagine a Tory victor saying the same thing about Kemi Badenoch. They'd be stifling their giggles, I fear. And I'm saying that as a fan. In July 2022, when the Tory party turned against Boris Johnson, Jenkyns said they would come to regret this 'just like they did with Thatcher'. Don't they just. The Tories continue to pay for the rise for the 44 wretched days of Liz Truss in power, even if Jenkyns supported her. But Jenkyns wasn't going to hang around and go down with the ship. After the calamitous general election, she knew full well that the realignment in British politics was firmly under way and that it wasn't any longer Left versus Right, but to use David Goodhart's words, 'somewheres versus anywheres'. You can't be both. And if you try to be both, you end up doing the splits. Only Boris, among the Tories, has the political agility to pull that one off. That explains as much as anything why the Tories' poll rating, which shot down to the low 20s under Truss, hasn't budged. And it's why Labour under the hapless Keir Starmer is following the Tories off a cliff. Today was always going to be great for Reform, a deserved bloody nose for Starmer and diabolical for the Tories – who remain condemned to the nation's naughty step. It might also be the final death knell, a middle finger even, to the two-party system. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
