"Hacker, I don't know if you remember but you once met my little boy and made him cry," Nandy told the troublesome terrier at the BBC's Salford studios last month.
"So I'm afraid I am announcing today that I am shutting the BBC down." "Hooray! It worked!" replied the dastardly dog.
Watching this exchange between the two Wiganers was the BBC's director general, Tim Davie, who will be hoping for a slightly different outcome from his future negotiations with Nandy.
He faces the single challenge that will define his legacy at the corporation: whether he can strike a deal with the government over a long-term financial future for the BBC.
Negotiations over the future of the licence fee - and whether it is retained in its current form or replaced with a subscription model or funded by a new tax - are expected to begin in January and last two years, with a deal needing to be in place by the end of the current royal charter in 2027.
Labour's election victory - and Keir Starmer's vague commitment to the licence fee - suggested the clouds might be parting for the BBC after 14 years of Tory-led government.
Denne historien er fra August 31, 2024-utgaven av The Guardian.
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Denne historien er fra August 31, 2024-utgaven av The Guardian.
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City win 'will clear minds and souls,' says Guardiola
Pep Guardiola has said Manchester City's return to winning ways will \"clear our minds and souls\" as he insisted the Premier League champions will get back to their best after a welcome 2-0 victory at Leicester.
Haaland's bundle of joy gives Guardiola timely lift
It was not without the kind of faults that have become the norm of late, but Pep Guardiola finally rebooted his winning Manchester City machine in his 500th match in charge.
Liverpool's high five Slot shrugs off transfer talk as Reds go eight points clear
Arne Slot has said the January transfer window will not become a distraction from Liverpool's fine run of form or cause a loss of control in his relationship with his players.
Salah stars again as Liverpool rout hapless Hammers
With 54 minutes gone at London Stadium, Trent Alexander-Arnold took a pass from Ryan Gravenberch with time to wait and look up, the lack of pressure from the West Ham players almost a public snub, before spanking a deflected shot past Alphonse Areola to make it 4-0 to Liverpool and kill off once again a game that was already long since dead.
Eze seals comeback to leave Saints stranded
When Aaron Ramsdale swapped warming the bench at Arsenal for a relegation battle with Southampton, even the England goalkeeper couldn't have imagined it would be this bad.
Gibbs-White profits off 'farcical' Everton as Forest go second
Nottingham Forest continue their remarkable ascent under Nuno Espirito Santo. A club that was one place above the relegation zone when Nuno arrived 12 months ago climbed to second in the Premier League with a comfortable win against Everton.
Strand Larsen's late strike piles pain on Postecoglou
For Tottenham, a home game against relegation-threatened opposition ought to mean only one thing. Instead, there was a sense of foreboding before and during plenty of this one.
Iraola delighted by 'perfect' Ouattara strike
Andoni Iraola lauded Dango Ouattara's impact off the bench as he came on to score an 89th-minute equaliser in Bournemouth's draw with Fulham.
Wilder defiant after Grant levels and Blades falter again
When does a stutter become a stumble? After a first home defeat of the season against Burnley on Boxing Day, the Championship high-flyers Sheffield United dropped two more home points against managerless West Brom.
'Staying was easy. Manchester just feels like home'
Kerstin Casparij on her new City contract, Gareth Taylor's obsessive levels of detail and her excitement for Euro 2025
