Episode 1 Points of View

Good afternoon and welcome to a new series of Points Of View,

the programme that gives you, the viewer, a voice,

and you have been using it loud and clear to give us your thoughts on The Voice.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Well, The Voice is the new kid on the block

so can it take on the older gang?

For eight series, The Apprentice has been doing its thing.

Eight seasons in which we've wondered if it is starting to wear thin.

Well, is it?

Katie, I'm afraid to say that...

having been in this position a third time, I'm not convinced.

And, so, Katie, you're fired.

Some may be drifting away,

but, as Elvis once said, 6.6 million fans can't be wrong.

And these shows are unashamedly fronted by that peculiar class of people known as celebs,

a category which can take you all the way from a businessman,

Lord Sugar, to a pop star, Jessie J.

And they are the people we want to watch, aren't they?

Frasier? Aren't they?

There's enough people out there now

to be put off by a celebrity fronting a programme,

irrespective of who it might be.

Big smile, Nat.

I stopped trying for a quick fix and it worked.

'I'm making four long journeys

'across the length and breadth of the country...'

Oh, no. I'm just doing this isn't helping?

I think there's always a danger with a celebrity fronting it,

some of the programme becomes about them, the celebrity,

rather than the wider issues

that they are seeking to broadcast to the viewer.

'But find an expert and you've got a prize catch.'

In terms of The Fishermen's Apprentice,

Monty Halls' approach was good.

He got the balance right. He took you along, but he didn't overbear.

I'm told...

I'm told I'm being a total lightweight.

It enabled you to get a real feel for the issue around fishing in inshore waters,

but also the real people that are involved,

so it was a really good programme.

Well, first off, thank you very much.

It's always lovely to get positive feedback.

And I do think there are certain experiences that have to be wholly immersive.

And you do need that little bit of background knowledge before you enter that environment,

and working with the fishing fleets was one of them.

They're one of the few sharks that can bite their own tail.

Look at that, the power!

I think the absolute key to good presenting

is making the story about the people you're talking to

and the environment that you're living and working in.

Shouldn't be about the presenter.

It's a tricky time.

And it's going to be for another few more years yet.

I think you do need a level of expertise, depending on the subject.

I think it's a responsible way of making television,

because you have an informed opinion

and often presenting is all about opinions.

And Frasier's opinion.

I really do hope that this approach is one that we can see more of,

going forward.

Not only has he been creating the blueprint for how presenters should lead programmes in future,

but Monty Halls was also proving he can be quite rufty tufty on the side,

hauling tonnes of fish on the roughest high seas.

And he has been joined in these manly adventurous pursuits

by an entire Scout troop of presenters on BBC Two

on Sunday nights, kicking off with Patrol Leader, Simon Reeve,

who's tackling the Indian Ocean.

Hold on!

There's something there.

Right-hand side, you see it?

On the starboard bow!

Straight-ahead.

Going very fast so they won't be able to get away.

The travelogue is dead

because we're all able to go on the journeys ourselves.

Intriguing thought.

And clearly not one anyone has run past Ewan McGregor,

the Man On A Mission, just one hour later.

Now a man who's found that gauche and gangly

opens more doors for him than muscle and masculinity,

Louis Theroux is back.

This time he's looking at the USA's dementia care capital,

Phoenix, Arizona.

He was looking quite tenderly at love between the patients.

Are you sentimental?

Is there a sentimental part of you that is still attached?

There's just sadness. No, no sentimental.

It's just sadness.

I probably feel it less than I did...um...

Every day gets easier and better.

As we all get older, we must expect to see more care homes on TV.

The Panorama team returned to them to look at the abuse of old people.

Last year, you'll remember, its undercover investigation

into the mistreatment of frail residents

led to arrests and home closures.

This time, a viewer rigged a camera in her mother's bedroom

and captured the evidence herself.

All of that yanking and chucking...

-It's as though she's cattle or something.

-Yeah.

It's like you see farmers doing that... oh, gosh.

They should be putting a sheet under Maria to move her, not yanking her.

Specially designed slip sheets were in Maria's bedroom.

Now, you see, all these things, like where I saw the bruises,

now makes sense.

Shocking undercover footage there

and, of course, it's that kind of filming which has proved necessary in the past

to bring perpetrators to justice.

But it is the gratuitous shock tactics of the current series

of Silent Witness that is putting off even diehard fans.

Did you know that Rachel had a bullet lodged in her spine

from her days with the Military Police?

Yes, she told me.

So, you knew that she lived with the spectre of sudden death

every minute of her day?

If you were hoping for gore there, sorry, Sunday teatime and all that.

I thought I would spare us.

Now, there's more drama with The Syndicate.

No dead bodies with a romp about shop girls winning the lottery,

but there has been a darker side, too.

-Why didn't you say something before?

-Because nobody asked!

Look, all I came for was to tell you

that Andy from the lottery's been in touch because they want us to do some

sort of an interview about how our lives have changed since we won.

-What, for the telly?

-I don't know,

but I thought we should all discuss it

cos I didn't know if you'd want to do it after everything that's happened.

But viewer Nichola Abrehart has another bone to pick with The Syndicate.

It's one of many dramas recently

to have a smokescreen clouding the plot.

Why does the BBC show so many smokers on their dramas?

I gave up for 18 months before I moved up here.

I've not had a rollie since I was 18.

I can't think of many BBC dramas where smoking isn't portrayed.

-Here's Proverbs, 1:7.

-Get away.

Programs such as Eastenders, The Syndicate.

He's still down there, but I never hear from him, thank God.

-Don't he want to see his daughter?

-I don't know, and I don't care.

-Prisoners' Wives.

-That is absolutely...

-Fantastic!

-Disgusting!

-And Gavin And Stacey.

-I want one final smoke as a single woman. Dad?

Aye, go on then.

-Vic?

-Well, if we've got a couple of minutes, why not.

Scenes where a character is shown pondering

with a cigarette are simply vile to watch.

I do find myself switching off, especially serial dramas.

I don't feel as if it's adding to the storyline.

I don't feel as if it's necessary, and it's promoting a damaging habit.

Oh, it is disgusting!

I'd like to know how the BBC can justify

showing so many smokers in their programmes.

Nichola thinks the BBC should stub it out.

It's about time the BBC started to take responsibility

for the programmes that it shows.

To portray a healthier nation,

to portray that we are not a nation of...um...smokers.

Let us talk now about a former Sunday afternoon viewing mate of ours,

the dependable EastEnders Omnibus.

Dependable? Well, it has suffered the indignity

of being bounced around the schedules.

It happens to us, too.

But, recently, it's been even less dependable because it has disappeared.

So, schedulers, own up! Show us that hat of yours.

You know, one day, we will get an answer to something

that doesn't involve the word iPlayer. One day.

We're out of time so let me just tell you how you get in touch.

Remember, there are plenty of ways. You can leap online,

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We'll be back next week. Goodbye.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd