Hiccup for Antiques Roadshow over historic abbey’s ‘ lout wine’
THERE could hardly be a better setting for filming Antiques Roadshow than an ancient monastery in the Devon countryside.
But plans for Buckfast Abbey to host an episode of the BBC programme have hit a stumbling block – over fears it will promote the controversial drink produced there.
Monks at the abbey have made the caffeinated tonic wine Buckfast since the 1890s. But the drink has become notorious in Scotland for its links to crime and loutish behaviour.
Presenter Fiona Bruce was set to head to the historic site near Buckfastleigh on September 13 to film an edition celebrating the abbey’s 1,000th year.
But former Scottish health secretary Alex Neil has urged the BBC to scrap the episode, claiming it will ‘give credibility’ to the 15 per cent ABV wine. In 2015, the Scottish Prison Service reported that more than 43 per cent of inmates had consumed Buckfast before their last offence, despite accounting for less than one per cent of Scotland’s total alcohol sales.
And since 2014, Buckfast has been linked to more than 6,500 reports of antisocial behaviour and violence in the country.
In a letter to the director-general of the BBC Lord Hall, the SNP MSP for Airdrie Mr Neil said: ‘For many years there has been great concern in Scotland about the sale of Buckfast and its adverse impact on the behaviour of those who drink it, owing to its excessive caffeine content, etc. A lot of anti- social behaviour is caused by the use of this drink. By using this Abbey as a location of this (excellent) programme it could send out the wrong message, especially to young people, that the BBC was giving respectability and credibility to this drink. I would strongly urge you not to use this location; or if you insist on doing so ensure that the BBC makes it clear that it does not in any way endorse the production and sale of this product.’
BBC sources insist there will be no on-air promotion of the product, while a spokesman for Antiques Roadshow said that the abbey was chosen due to its historical significance.
And a spokesman for Buckfast Abbey said: ‘With this important landmark year and the wealth of history at Buckfast Abbey, we are very much looking forward to welcoming the Antiques Roadshow.’ Stewart Wilson, a spokesman for drink manufacturer J Chandler and Co, said: ‘We wrote to Mr Neil when he was the health secretary. We received a reply back clearly indicating that the Scottish Government has no evidence to suggest that our brand causes any issues.’