Read this: 29/10/2021 Radio 4 Feedback

BBC sounds music Radio podcasts hello, have you seen this winter least does the BBC's health editor have the answers or is it just as confused as the rest of us.

Yes we are scratching my head sometimes.

It's a difficult that's an understatement feedback this week.

I'll be talking to Hugh pym.

The BBC's health editor who is well suited to the job is Dad was a doctor and they moving the furniture at six music but the new seating arrangements are not everyone's been listening to six music for the past 15-years.

Maybe it's not my radio station anymore is the station in danger of alienating its listeners or periodic essential if it is to attract new listeners, we will discuss.

Do you have to be interested in sport to enjoy a podcast about the criminal behind a cricketing revolution? I never thought I'd ever be saying these sentences lots of people sitting around waiting to be explored by someone with his swagger and I think that's what's so interesting is the human psychology cricket side that makes it and doesn't sound is Qasim was out of her comfort zone, but what about a recall is sport colleague find out later in feedback.

Are covered cases about to plummet without the government having to resort to plant by have UK covered cases Risen to such a high point in the first place most confused about the statistics which pro-force from governments universities and think tanks does anyone really know what is going on earlier in the pursuit of some answers.

I talked if you burn BBC's health editor.

I Began by quoting the Times health editor who wrote on Wednesday morning that covid-19 watches can drive themselves mad at 10 to interpret the daily case number ask you if you wanted a bad his own sanity well.

I certainly wonder about the case numbers everyday and hospital admissions and deaths all those numbers Roger cause that's followed so closely by the audiences so trying to make sense of it is a really important part of our job, but I always with colleagues emphasize that the sort of weekly tree.

More important because that gives you the underline picture and you can get this huge variation in daily numbers which which can be a bit confusing but yes scratching my head sometimes.

It's a difficult job but audiences seem to really want the date of themselves particularly about their own local areas, so it's our job to try and make a bit of a problem is we all list as we all want certain to don't worry and we're all asking you just tell us is it is it down is it getting better to get it was and you can and I'll give us that answer.

Can you know we can get a sense of where the data is pointing with caveats and even Chris Whitty England's chief medical officer and Patrick vallance say at the moment the modelling is very under the models themselves who try and project forward to coming up with sometimes differing scenarios, so we have to try and give a sense of the direction of travel and

Read that but with various warnings to go with it that these are very uncertain times well.

I'll try and pick up some days.

It's just a little later, but let's get an answer what I listen to want to ask or rather in one instance want to congratulate LE7 Exeter Devon thank you to you for his excellent coverage of the covid-19 pandemic is continue to provide informative you especially in the early days, and it must be quite frightening to go into the code wards in hospitals.

There's so much about the virus unknown fantastic work you Judith lead you are not keeping the public informed and so the public thinks covered is no longer an issue 1-in 20 high school children had covered last week booster jabs.

Have been rolled out to GP still don't have the supplies of flu vaccine come on BBC do your job then give us some news.

It's got the prominence fairly often in the last few months.

When do bit quiet this story because of what was happening in Afghanistan and then all the big debates about fuel prices and thorn which is when the direction of travel was little and clear cases would going up dramatically or falling dramatically in September but it's certainly back as a new story leading many bulletins sometimes and I think I think that reflects the huge importance that editors and BBC coverage puts on it, so I don't think that there's any sense of we're letting off on our coverage.

I think that the uncertainty over winter is really important for the NHS and so we're not quite sure where it's going to go in the next few months ago, but there's lot of other things happening to put pressure on the NHS listen to you want certainty.

They want simple answers and you're having to tell them all the time there on is simple answers here.

I did there is conflicting evidence the models don't always agree with each other.

Do you sometimes get frustrated yourself that you can't give clear guidance to the public a little frustrating that when people want clarity.

They all want to know will there be another lockdown.

They all want to know will there be another surge in cases and it is quite difficult to say 100-percent.

Yes or no one that I suppose it's the same in many walks of Life look at economic forecasts there.

It's only variables and I think the thing about the modelling for covid is the models themselves say it all depends on people's behaviour will people remain cautious with going out meeting other people than wearing face coverings.

What about others are the factors that are hard to predict this virus has this to Moira Hurst why do the restrictions seem to be given more weight than the Hand That restrictions do what's the wire case numbers used as justification rather than hospital admissions and deaths due to virus.

But the numbers actually tell us different things infections are the very latest position with work over it's going as always a delay between catching covid and then if you're going to be the hill needing hospital treatment then a further delay.

If sadly you're not going to survive so I think it's a fair point that data is only one part of it until different story and then there's all the work that was not done by the NHS because of the panda we still learning month-on-month with another set of data from the NHS in different parts of the UK are waiting lists and that is all part of the that the toll taken by the pandemic on the Nation's 13 implication is look when are situated different situation now forget about numbers really of cases.

That's not important any more deaths Odessa Down we should be getting back Morden real life.

Do you have somebody with that? I do have some sympathy because case.

May be relatively high compared to other countries, but the vaccine has been very successful and therefore the numbers of people who get the virus who then become seriously ill considerably lower than during a previous Peaks but we shouldn't forget the impact of covid-19 in hospital, but you can be really quite ill if your school you're missing school and then there's always the danger of long covid these long-running symptoms afterwards but certainly the Outlook because of the vaccine that's for the radio from perspective on on house are infections on their own well of course the parchment covered there always other health store isn't particularly recently.

There's the focus on GP appointment the richest Canterbury I'm a GP and I'm worried about some of your reporting it appears in accurate emotive and has invited unintended is it may have been violence against Frontline NHS staff.

The NHS is under pressure.

It is not new it's the worst pressure ever that is not you either indeed is familiar as every year recently has been the worst ever to date simplifying the story to make it all about face-to-face GP appointment is doing the NHS for the service.

I implore journalists to get to the root causes and be part of a solute, please so you would you accept that some of the criticism of GPS not offering face-to-face appointment has been unfair hasn't taken into account the wider issues.

Yes, I think some of the coverage across all the media has been unfair GP say they've never been as busy they've never had the workload that they've got no and that's partly reflection of what's going on elsewhere in the health system that the people who had health conditions and didn't come forward during the pandemic, but no feel confident to do so there are other viruses and the

At the very front layer this and it's been really difficult for them to offer appointments for everybody who wants them face-to-face with that being said there is variation some GP's are offering more face-to-face appointments than others I'm looking at what that variation is caused by but I think the whole issue of face-to-face appointments.

He's only one bit of a much bigger wider picture of pressure on the health service which we are doing our report consistent another listings this question about really your your priorities in your coverage to did Hudson from presteigne in Powys I'd like to know how you decide upon which aspects of care to focus on in BBC programmes in Any Given week reducing.

You are continually driven by headlines or do sometimes stand back and say they're always other things going on that like hidden iceberg.

I've got a report on them.

I must get them onto the news what is been quite challenging the last 18 months to break away from a news driven, Cove

Because it's been so much happening affecting all our lives.

So there's been a quite consistently busy job in covering all that but we do try and stand I can say hanger.

What is the impact on mental health for example.

That's not in the headlines.

Let's look at how people are affected by city living on their own and all the challenges of not being able to socialise + underlying health mental health issues, which of have been there for a while and have been really heightened during the pandemic for example to look at the future of technology in InHealth in the future.

Let's look at life beyond the pandemic.

So we do try to do that.

We probably should do more but it's it's a very very demanding you schedule sometimes.

I thanks as hell that is Hugh pym, and please do let us know your thoughts about that or anything else to do with BBC Radio and podcasts.

This is how you get in touch you can send an email to.

Back at bbc.co.uk the address is feedback PO Box 67234 London se1p 4yx you can follow activity on Twitter by using at BBC R4 feedback or you can call us and leave a phone message on 03330456004 standard landline charges apply, but it could cost more and some mobile networks all these details are on our website.

This week we've been asking to BBC Radio listeners to step out of their comfort zones and listen to a program that would normally be on their Radar and this week once again.

We've tried something a little different we have one who doesn't listen at all to the BBC and another whose only recently started listening, but isn't yet totally committed Catherine Collins live near St Albans and Ida Holbrook is in London you don't listen to BBC Radio so what do you listen to I listen to a lot of music on Spotify through my smart speaker and over the last 6-months or so, I've been listening to stop times radio.

I've taken two to listening to that in the background while I've put around looking after my 2-year old.

What about you either? What's what do you listen to normally and how do you listen to it? Normally listen to Woman's Hour the Today programme and word-of-mouth and I access everything on the BBC Sounds app, because I'm always at work when they shows are on.

So that's how I access them.

I mean in the morning.

I've got ready attic in most rooms to have some morning half asleep the alarm goes off as lean over and switch on my radio.

You don't know I don't I don't have the speaker in the kitchen.

We asked you to listen to a BBC Radio 5 Live podcast sports strangers crimes, Stamfordham cricket, and this was episode 1 of the 70 think available through BBC sounds and here's a clip of the programme telling US dollars looks like here it is.

Castle how would you describe the program explain what it's about it's about the Texan billionaire who landed in Lords and blew up the idea of cricket as a entertainment for Staffordshire Brits and what about you either? How would you describe the program is the story of the Texas billionaire sir Allen Stanford who's threaten the very English Heritage game of crib with a winner takes all 20 million in a suitcase arriving in a helicopter with lots of swagger and would you normally be attracted to this sort of the program? I seen it.

It was there available as a podcast will it be sunny you have gone to absolutely not I have very little interest in cricket for me.

It was quite different anything.

I would normally listens to and what about Catherine would have you you presumably wouldn't have found this year and asked you to go and look for it, but if you've heard it, but whatever means that would you have stuck with the program? I have no interest in cricket.

I have no interest.

What I have very little interest in True Crime but I found it really engaging.

I thought the presenter whose name is Gates me at the moment of the back of one episode of this listen to anything else that I knew he was presented well Radio 1 will be delighted to next he does breakfast 80s with passionate about you could tell that I mean this wasn't a guy coming to support for the first time.

He loves cricket himself and so you really was engaged wasn't that I felt that he made it very accessible it never occurred to look after what he's TV stands for but the IPL stands for I just hope just washes over me when the boat comes on the news on the radio or the TV but it was a really engaging without being he made accessible to someone who didn't know anything about cricket.

So you could get on board with out and enjoy the story was more like a mad ITV2

Format than the cricket match which is fine though.

I'm not a snob there's room for everything but I thought the cricket was already the best thing ever I thought it was the best it could be Test cricket in particular.

I did you sure that you and Greg James I agree with the idea that he made it like engaging and he explains a lot of things.

I just I found it a little bit cheesy in parts.

I think it was like the bit where he was like rewind and he Greek appétit and the use of music in it and I think that comes from me know and Greg James already in knowing him is like a Radio 1 presenter.

It was good and I think for me as well as Alicia is very pasty.

There was a lot going on I felt that I lost Focus in the program.

Well.

It was 35 minutes long and clearly it has to appeal 20 cricketers does need a cricket captain was that something which I mean, it's not doing the subject like that.

You have to seem to be as a presenter informed and authoritative and had a few you and his special.

You like lose some of them, so shall we say listening to cricket fans, but they're interested in the crime.

Did you think he got that balance right? I'm going to listen to the rest.

I like the Pacey this is actually I tend to be doing stuff when I'm listening to the radio.

There was a bit of repetition at the start 20 million-dollar.

Yes 20 not 20 but it was in fact apparently 20 million, so I felt like he's set out his stall quite clearly and it was traumatic but I suppose that before you have the crime Story isn't it with a human interest part that are engaging and I felt the presenter didn't take over he just let people share their parts of the story the background while Britain was so vulnerable to this sort of station at the time of British cricket.

Not to Hong Kong well.

I think we're going from both of you that you are going to listen to The another episode, but either can I ask you this mean that as a result of finding this podcast?

Find directed towards it biased you you look for more podcast from BBC sounds will your general wave listening have been affected by this podcast yeah possibly but I listen to Radio 4 listen to things that already had a programs.

I don't listen to podcast so I think I would definitely have a route around maybe not cricket for me, but I will have a look and see what other things are available about you.

You're loyal to the x radio is that and it's not because there is some programs.

I don't like so I'm always looking for something else to listen to at the you know in there is lots.

I won't know any names know like I think it's baby slightly more open-minded you know I've got a bit of sewing to do for an hour or instead of just cracking on why would only listening to or or listening T-Rex which my daughter insist 3 hours a day.

She's a massive glam rock face so I'm always looking for something to exercise my brain master world pottering around the house, but no it has made me a bit more open-minded and

Will be signed off by sports all crime in a title that I'm going to explore a little bit further.

I think like I do.

Thank you very much for joining us sports strangers crimes podcast are available via BBC sounds you just go to the podcast patient scroll down to the sports section.

Next March this network will celebrate its 20th anniversary BBC Radio 6 music BBC Radio 6 music Castle fiercely loyal audience as the present director-general Tim Davey found out when he tried to close down in 2010 when he was director of radio the protest anymore so passionate and widespread, but the corporation reverses position the station survived and it's sausage in listener numbers according to the latest radio listening figures released this week the first by the way since the start of the pandemic 6 Music has increased its audience to a record 2.69 million listeners and is the most popular digital only so did its lineup really need to be refreshed.

It's management thought so in recent months the station has undergone a series of DJ changes at last week Craig Charles took over the

From the popular DJ Shaun Keaveny who left the station early in September when according to him.

He was offered a lesser commitment these changes have had a mixed research from Alison call Ashwin on social media as seen a lot of complaints about the recent changes to the BBC 6 music schedule personally, I'm very unhappy about the length Radcliffe and Maconie being cut further and noted others have been very upset by the removal of Shaun Keaveny be on the initial announcement which provided no rationale for the change.

I've seen nothing from BBC 6 music that is explained why they decided to make these changes Darren on Twitter these are all amazing changes especially can't wait to hear more of Craig and bobbins Twitter I'm genuinely death stated that Sean is leaving please bring him back is that opportunity ever arises? He's a wonderful broadcast.

A man I'll miss this show so much Ross on Twitter great to see Radcliffe and Maconie it more bearable, but why cut them down to 2? What do you have against two of the most popular and fervently adored DJs at the station, you're lucky to have dinner great station, but listen to your listeners a bit, please been listening to six music the past 15-years maybe it's not my radio station anymore it needed or support through all the lean years but now it's strong enough it.

It's called listeners and embrace them with a Radio 1 listeners.

It's so desperately wants we were told no one from 6 Music was available to discuss these changes instead.

We were given this statement our schedule evolves over time and this means occasional changes.

Would you lie to welcome Craig Charles to weekday afternoons?

Amy lemay, show now kicking off the weekend mornings from 6 a.m.

Mark and Stuart get the lion.

They deserve as they start their show at 8 a.m.

We wish Shaun Keaveny the best of luck for the future and respect his decision to leave the stairs well earlier before the latest listening figures were published.

I was delighted to be joined by Matt Deegan radio consultant is working strategy management for Global broadcasters.

I Began by asking you if 6 Music is important as it once was when years ago people were virtually prepared to go on strike to support it when the BBC proposed closing it down a different radio station and something that has very passionate audience they did then and it does now.

I think probably the thing that shifted over last 10 years is packed though.

It was probably the only place will be only Media you could get that mix of Music and personalities.

I think probably growth into radio streaming podcasts.

It's probably less of the only place.

Do that sort of thing but the course you can understand why anybody who likes something when someone changes that they feel annoyed by this don't like the changes as always a reaction to Changes but in particular that by the departure of Shaun Keaveny now.

He was a family offered something he thought was less interesting to him and he decided the BBC tells us to leave the station was a mistake to let him think when you run a radio station is a bit like running a football team and you have a squad which you do one to rotate sometimes and sure who's Alexa broadcaster.

He does a good job before he was on 6music been there a long time.

It's no surprise the people a disappointed.

He's gone but also you got to remember that particular maybe for the people that disappointed that there's changes they Gonna think back to when they started listening to that radio station and an appeal to them at that age perhaps and the station to update and change and attract new audiences.

Painting with 66 biggest having a good last book before radio got pause for coronavirus though, you could look at the numbers and they did sort of platitudes around there been around the same figures for probably 2 years and when they changed the Breakfast Show with Lauren Laverne that did give an increase to that segment Sean like the rest of the station was relatively flat so if you are the new boss.

You do want to grow what you do and I'm sure that she's taking the opportunity to look at that and go as I think there's some great somebody who is the music on 6 Music very different from Radio 1 from Radio 1.

I think it's very easy to go so it plays new pop music therefore it's the same Radio 1 is very very pop driven and what stairs Indian and dance and an urban in there.

It's a different selection of tracks are different types of artists involved.

Add music Denton 6 Music started.

It was very much more of an indie radio station and it took that can a guitar music Sensibility unsure Thomas's of latest 32b broadened and it's bought in moorabbin or or dance the did it used to be getting that thing if you went with your current listening and you went back 10 or 15 years when you started listening and you think about that.

You're musical repertoire.

Well.

It's doing that same snapshot of the people who may be 15 or 20 years younger than that this group are so is it more reflective independent sound in a new music.

Yes, it is compared to the Indie days, but for a 25 or 30 year old is probably more representative of their musical.ly do people grow 6 Music I mean some people say will you Andrew Radio 1 6 Music is there for people of Every Generation had a look at the numbers and

It's a radio station that does very well with 25 to 55 year olds it is a male skiers radio station.

It's one that people listen to as they get older they listen to a more of it as they have they have more time on most radio stations ages is a big factor and it makes you move on not necessary in your entirety you little can you listen to things moving also means that if you're the radio station you've got a track people the other end and one of the dangerous really registration.

Is that you grow up with your audience and if you just follow that all the song and then you end up seeing that client rather than seeing what happened at the beginning with 6 Music and it was going to be shut down was it cost per litre was too high and the Ferrari about it drags a load of new listeners into it and suddenly.

It's cost polistena with acceptable and so it survived and you'll have to bring in you listen to.

Thank you very much indeed my dear and that's it for feedback to this week on next week's program will be talking to Stephen Nolan and David Thompson from the BBC podcast series Nolan the gates.

They've been investigating the BBC until then keep on keeping safe to buy.