Bill Baileys Birding Bonanza (1 Viewer)

[billsbirding]

The point of including the celebrities is to increase the audience. As I'm all for as many people as possible being drawn in to knowing about birdwatching, I'm all in favour of the celebrity involvement.

Most of the criticism on here seems to be from individuals who didn't enjoy the show personally. Fine, don't watch it, but accept that it may still have a role for others.

Personally, I enjoyed the wildlife footage and Bill Bailey's involvement and was prepared to put up with the inane celebrities for that. And to be fair, I found it considerably less inane than I often find Springwatch. It would be nice to have more wildlife programming that didn't have to dumb down for the masses but I think that about 90% of telly programmes. The masses pay the bills and I guess we're stuck with it. And, as I said above, my son watched it happily. He can't be persuaded to tolerate 2 minutes of Bill Oddie.

Looking forward to the next one - especially now I hear it's from Sheringham.

Thanks for posting, Lucinda.

Agreed 100% (apart from the bit about Oddie, a personal favourite! :-O). Bill Bailey was great in it and added that extra humour it needed. There are conflicting views on here because it's about TASTE, don't like it? Don't watch it. Don't keep moaning on here about it. It's a bit of a laugh, it's supposed to be absolutely pointless and stupid.

 

[Helenelizabeth2]

So you're the target audience eh?
I bet Joe Pasquale was wonderful during the seawatch challenge that sadly gets left on the cutting room floor....
*disturbing squeaky voice*
"3 Great Custard Cremes 200 yards out going west"

Oh...wait...she said Snettisham.

I don't think Attenboroughs programmes are 'dumbed down' and the birding with Bill Oddie series was very good. Packham has made some good nature programmes as well. Even Dilger pops up on the One Show from time to time with some interesting bits and bats.
Nah, these 'celeb'-'reality' shows are cheap and easy. That's entertainment and apparently what everyone wants. Luckily i'm not everyone. What next 'Stamp collecting with Jonathan Ross' or perhaps 'Dogging with Julian Clarey'?

dave...

Yup, I'm the target audience. That's why it's dumbed down.

I agree with you about Attenborough but I've never been able to stick Bill Oddie. Not since the Goodies anyway.

I'm sure I'd be staying in to watch both your suggestions.

 

[kawwauser]

dean powells sugestion of using every day people on the show would be great for us birders,i would enjoy watching people learning about birds especially when they have virtually no knowledge,but the masses would not be interested,like it or not it,s celebs that catch the masses attention,joe,s scaring anticts are having a poitive effect,im a taxi driver and last night i picked up two guys who were talking about the lack of football on the tv,(most scottish games were abondened)one guy said to the other(i watched that nature program with bill baily in it,thee were two celeb teams and they were trying to count thousands of birds,they had a halfwit from eastenders on and when one team was counting the birds he run out and scared all the ducks off the beach)although he didn,t learn about bird id he did appreciate what joe did was wrong

 

[ColinD]

.....Nah, these 'celeb'-'reality' shows are cheap and easy. That's entertainment and apparently what everyone wants. Luckily i'm not everyone...

So you'd agree then that since it's "what everyone wants" it's more likely to reach new birders than the more traditional type of wildlife show?

I have to say, I'm really struggling to understand why some folk seem to think that we need to have yet another educational birding lecture on telly, and why that would broaden the appeal of birding. What on earth is wrong with a bunch of celebs having a laugh in the name of birding, with big posters everywhere advertising it?

I used to think that I was a dinousaur in the modern age, but I see now that I'm actually quite progressive compared to many here.

 

[Euan Buchan]

Looking forward to tonight's one

 

[Monahawk]

So you're the target audience eh?
I bet Joe Pasquale was wonderful during the seawatch challenge that sadly gets left on the cutting room floor....
*disturbing squeaky voice*
"3 Great Custard Cremes 200 yards out going west"

Oh...wait...she said Snettisham.

I don't think Attenboroughs programmes are 'dumbed down' and the birding with Bill Oddie series was very good. Packham has made some good nature programmes as well. Even Dilger pops up on the One Show from time to time with some interesting bits and bats.
Nah, these 'celeb'-'reality' shows are cheap and easy. That's entertainment and apparently what everyone wants. Luckily i'm not everyone. What next 'Stamp collecting with Jonathan Ross' or perhaps 'Dogging with Julian Clarey'?

dave...

With you all the way on these comments Dave.Had a good chuckle over them.:-O
Bill Bailey may be knowledgeable about birds to some or when he feels like it, but that certainly wasn't apparent on his interview on Channel 5 last week. He played right into the hands of the inane interviewer and made us birders look like woolly headed, daft as a brush, Citroen 2CV driving, liberal eccentrics which is how I suppose the programme makers and audience wanted us portrayed as. Shame on you Bill. Stick to the comedy and music mate. Leave birding to proper birders not Johnny cum Lately entertainers.:C

 

[Helenelizabeth2]

He ... made us birders look like woolly headed, daft as a brush, Citroen 2CV driving, liberal eccentrics ...

Your problem is?

 

[Monahawk]

Your problem is?

I'm woolly headed, daft as a brush........Christ I'm, I'm a birder the way Joe public wants us to be and the way BB portrayed us.

PS.-I never drove or would drive 2CV though, so not fully qualified after all.

Seriously, I should have mentioned in my last post on this matter, that I watched a recording of this programme at a birding friends house last Sunday[ he has Sky ]. I have to say I quickly lost interest and my attention focused on his beer collection instead. B However it wasn't that good either really:-C but it was alot better than sitting through that dross.:C
Like I said, birding programmes by proper birders, not entertainers with a passing interest especially in the company of ??? celebs.[Who the f... were they?]

 

[Winterdune]

Grey Plover called Golden Plover - what a howler... What's the point of having a birding programme then cocking up the ID???
Sean

 

[Cortonbirds]

So Bill Bailey proven to actually NOT know anything about birds. The Grey Plover was obvious..PLUS first they talked of Knot then showed video of a Dunlin over it...and they took a phot of a Redshank..which actually showed a clear Dunlin in the photo. Alex Zane probably knows the most of the 3 and called it a Dunlin but was overruled.
Most worrying is, as ever the producers of many bird programmes dont have the sense to employ a sound bird watcher to proof check their programmes. This happens all the time...ive seen an episode of Blue Peter where they said heres a Greenfinch on the nuts which actually was a Siskin etc etc..( im not even going to go into Tony Sopers stuff...)

 

[Cortonbirds]

However I do like the programme in general and I believe it may perk the interest of the general public and is entertaining while introducing birding concepts like digiscoping, JIZZ (G.I.S.S), ringing etc etc. Its not really aimed at us at all. I would like to see a real birders show, much like the old Bill Oddie ones. It doesnt have to be on a prime channel, it could easily be on one of the minor sattelite/freeview channels and there be would a niche for it.

 

[Stephen Dunstan]

Maybe it's just me but I thought the one tonight wasn't great. The ringing competition didn't work at all. I am not sure it would have held the enthusiasm of new birders or people with just a passing interest in birds.

Last week's seemed better, but maybe it is just too thin a concept.

Stephen.

 

[Euan Buchan]

It was okish tonight not as good as last week mebe next week will be better, never been mad keen on Joe Pasqualie.

 

[Ben Rackstraw]

As well as the ID errors regarding the wader shots, did anyone else think there was something odd about one of the (presumably) library shots of Sparrowhawk? I will have to have another look at the footage on the repeat showing, but my initial impression was that it wasn't a Sparrowhawk, or a British species...

 

[marek_walford]

I love Bill Bailey (Black Books is fantastic and I've seen his live show twice) but this programme is dreadful! Something along the lines of Extreme Fishing with Robson Green (though with birders and not Robson Green) would have been a far better concept.

 

[Euan Buchan]

I enjoyed this week's episode enjoyed the Gannets

 

[Original PaulE]

I enjoyed this week's episode enjoyed the Gannets

yes i thought it was better this week i thought it got across some of the excitement of sea watching

 

[Johnny1]

I thought bird watching was one of the subjects safe from the celebrity syndrome, things like Celebrity Big Brother, Celebrity Masterchef, Celebrity Wife Swap! now there's a thought I wonder what I'd get for my wife? Anyway it looks like I've been proved wrong and this is basically Celebrity Bird Watching. I suppose as long as you don't take it too seriously it's O.K. Maybe one week they could have proper birders on?

 

[Birdbrain]

"Yeah! with a bird race"

 

[kawwauser]

despite panning it from episode1 i for some unexplained reason am finding myself arranging my time schedule so i can watch this,i loved the gannets plus the off camera views of real birders putting up with the celebs,apart from joe who scared the waders i cant remember/name all the other celebs who took part,and its only been on 3 weeks,how many of you can honestly name all 6 celebs without checking?,plus their careers,it would be a bonus if bill talked to the local birders even for a short time,im not sure what my allure to this program is, im currently thinking its checking out new locations,i have never visited any of these reserves and seeing the footage of them is great,maybe its this thats catching our birding eyes