Bishops express concern after BBC loses right to make Songs of Praise
THE BBC has lost the right to make Songs of Praise, in what a senior Church of England bishop has warned could be “another nail in the coffin of the religious literacy of the nation”.
The much-loved programme has been made inhouse since 1961. But under a new competitive tendering process, BBC Studios was required to pitch for the contract.
It lost out to a joint bid by two independent production companies.
Nine Lives Media, which has made editions of Panorama, Channel 4’s Dispatches and a documentary entitled Holiday Love Rats, was the successful bidder alongside Avanti Media, which has produced several Songs of Praise episodes set in Wales.
Their pitch offered better value for money and more innovative ideas, the BBC said. Staff who worked on the show must either switch employers or lose their jobs.
Mark Linsey, director of BBC Studios, said: “We are disappointed with the out- come. We take great pride in how we’ve nurtured and developed the series over many years.”
Although there are no plans to move Songs of Praise from its Sunday night slot, the loss of its flagship religious programme to outsiders is a major blow to the corporation.
It will also prompt fears that religion will slip further down the BBC’s agenda. Religious affairs programming has been absorbed into the remit of James Purnell, head of radio and education. The Rt Rev Graham James, the Bishop of Norwich, said: “I wish the new production companies well in their endeavours.
“But I do fear that there will be a loss in the BBC of specialist expertise in broadcast worship, which has been a core element of its public service remit.”
Before the tender result was announced, Bishop James said: “It’s a worry to some of us that it will be another nail in the coffin of the religious literacy of the nation.”
All BBC programmes will be put out to tender. The first to go through the process, A Question of Sport, was retained by BBC Studios. Holby City and Horizon are currently under consideration.
The Rt Rev Nick Baines, the Bishop of Leeds, said: “An independent company may well bring a fresh approach to Songs of Praise, but the BBC should also continue to bolster its religious output.
“At a time when the need for religious literacy and understanding is more acute than ever, the expertise of the BBC’s religious department is an asset that needs protecting.”
‘It’s a worry that it’s another nail in the coffin of the religious literacy of the nation’