It appears that the BBC has been so overwhelmed by the number of emails about Jerry Springer – The Opera that they have resorted to a standard response to all of them, as if all of them were complaints. This may well mean the total number of “complaints” includes emails backing the transmission.

I received one of these replies to my email – for an example of its contents, see Doctorvee and Nick Barlow.

See Ryan’s blog for suggestions of how to show support following the broadcast.

The Fifth Annual Weblog Awards are open for nominations. There are all sorts of catergories, from Best Meme and Best Tagline of a Weblog to Best Entertainment Weblog and Weblog of the Year. The more people who put nominations forward, the more representative the nominees will be. You don’t have to nominate in every category and you can nominate up to three candidates (four for Weblog of the Year) in each category.

My e-mail to the Beeb. You can contact them at info@bbc.co.uk.

Dear BBC,

I am concerned at the large number of complaints you appear to have received in advance of Saturday’s scheduled screening of “Jerry Springer – the Opera”.

This show has been performed to thousands of theatregoers in two years in the West End. It has won critical plaudits and continues to draw in audiences. I was pleased to hear that the BBC would be translating the show to screen and therefore allowing interested viewers such as myself, who have been unable to see the opera on stage, to experience it and judge it for ourselves.

While the content of the programme will no doubt prove offensive to some people, the already high profile campaign against the broadcast should serve to warn off any viewers likely to be offended. (And yet I can’t help the nagging feeling that many of those will, perversely, tune in anyway to justify their subsequent complaints to OFCOM.) As a public service broadcaster, the BBC has a responsibility to all licence payers, not just the “moral majority”. While I find various programmes to enjoy amongst the BBC’s output, there are many shows I would never watch. This is how it should be. A BBC pandering solely to the prurience of organisations such as MediaWatch is a BBC for a vocal minority. The BBC must continue to show a diverse and challenging range of programming.

I am pleased that the BBC has insisted that “Jerry Springer – The Opera” will be shown and I hope you will continue to defend your position robustly. I look forward to watching the show on Saturday night.

Due to a mobile phone/alcohol coincidence (i.e., they coincided) shortly before Christmas, I’ve had very limited internet access. I’m currently in an internet café in Edinburgh catching up with emails, etc.

Be forewarned: I have a number of posts saved up to splurge onto these pages once my replacement phone arrives. In the mean time, I’ve added a sidebar link to the DEC donation page so you can pass the time waiting by contributing to the tsunami relief fund.