In a heated exchange, BBC’s Tim Davie told Peter Strachan he’s wasting time discussing Scottish talent concerns, sparking outrage.
Edinburgh: So, there’s been some drama over at the BBC. Peter Strachan, who’s on the board of Directors UK, is pretty upset. He claims that Tim Davie, the BBC’s director general, isn’t taking Scottish talent seriously.
After a meeting at the Holyrood Culture Committee, Strachan tried to chat with Davie about the lack of opportunities for Scots in the industry. But Davie told him he was “wasting his time.” Ouch!
Strachan felt that Davie’s attitude showed a real “arrogance” towards the concerns of the Scottish film and TV scene. He’s been vocal about how London-based companies are overshadowing local talent.
He even mentioned that the BBC is misclassifying shows like The Traitors as Scottish when most of the crew is based in England. That’s a big deal!
Strachan wants to meet with Davie and BBC Scotland’s director, Hayley Valentine, to discuss these issues further. He’s not backing down, saying it’s about people’s careers and livelihoods.
Davie did say he wants to improve the number of Scots working on BBC productions, which Strachan welcomed. But he’s worried that the numbers are still embarrassingly low.
When asked about Strachan’s claims, Valentine said there’s not much experience in Scotland for certain genres. But Strachan disagrees, insisting things aren’t getting better.
In the end, it looks like this conversation is far from over. Strachan is determined to push for more opportunities for Scottish talent, and he’s not going to let the BBC brush him off.
