DAWN NEESOM MIND OF MY OWN

The Woman's Own columnist has her say on the BBC, AI and chatbots and condiments

WE KNOW BEST

It's about time the BBC started listening to us.

It's more than 100 years old, can cost you well over £100 every year and sees 3.500 of us prosecuted every month. Some scary secret law that you weren't aware of? Nope, it's a thing that 97% of us have in our homes and it's such a part of everyday life, we barely notice it any more. Got it yet? It's your telly. Or rather the good old BBC, the most benign sounding British thing ever. As much of the fabric of our lives as the NHS, queues and talking about the weather.

But for many it's not the cuddly Auntie* it once was. The licence fee went up by more than £10 this month to £169.50 for colour, and it will be £57 for black and white, after being frozen during the pandemic and even the big boss of the Beeb, Tim Davie, admits it's a busted flush.