{"id":702892,"date":"2026-07-21T06:18:15","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T06:18:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/702892\/"},"modified":"2026-07-21T06:18:15","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T06:18:15","slug":"romesh-mr-tumble-and-louis-therouxs-lever-of-doom-the-bbc-advert-dividing-the-nation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/702892\/","title":{"rendered":"Romesh, Mr Tumble and Louis Theroux\u2019s lever of doom: The BBC advert dividing the nation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Your support helps us to tell the story<\/p>\n

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.<\/p>\n

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.<\/p>\n

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.<\/p>\n

Your support makes all the difference.Read more<\/p>\n

With the BBC<\/a> under more pressure than ever to prove its worth, the broadcaster has come out fighting in a celebrity-packed new advert showcasing the best of what it has to offer. And, naturally, the starry commercial has divided the nation.<\/p>\n

Following Tim Davies\u2019 exit, which came after the Trump-Panorama debacle<\/a> proved to be one controversy too many, the Beeb is attempting to usher in a new era. Doing so isn\u2019t proving easy though, and its new director-general Matt Brittin was forced to kick off his stint at the top last month by announcing up to 2,000 job losses due to budget cuts<\/a>. It\u2019s since been revealed that some 500,000 UK households cancelled their TV licences<\/a> in the past year. <\/p>\n

Aired during Sunday night\u2019s World Cup final, \u201cWhat has the BBC ever done for me?\u201d is less an advert and more a rallying cry for continued funding \u2013 with plenty of surreal moments packed into just three minutes and 45 seconds. The reaction has been… mixed. While some have argued the commercial is an emotional and powerful defence of one of the most important public institutions, others have suggested it\u2019s a patronising lecture from people who we know, thanks to last week\u2019s salary report<\/a>, get paid handsomely to work for the BBC. Whichever side of the fence you sit on, there\u2019s one thing everyone can agree on: it\u2019s certainly sparked conversation. <\/p>\n

\"RanganathanRanganathan takes centre stage in the rallying cry (BBC)<\/p>\n

The advert is actually a remake; John Cleese took the lead in the 1985 original, asking a pub barman: \u201cFifty-eight quid for the privilege of sitting in your own home, watching your own television set. It\u2019s diabolical. I mean, what\u2019s the BBC ever given us for 58 quid?\u201d The Monty Python\u2019s Life of Brian star was then schooled by an impressively starry range of punters, with the likes of David Attenborough, Terry Wogan and David Jason (yes, it was also quite blokey) pointing out the many services the BBC provides. <\/p>\n

This time around, Romesh Ranganathan<\/a> takes centre stage and the new version, perhaps wisely, doesn\u2019t mention that the cost of the licence fee now stands at \u00a3180 a year for most households (thanks, inflation). The random pub has also been swapped for EastEnders boozer the Queen Vic, and Ranganathan (a man who has, as the advert points out, benefited massively from multiple gigs on the BBC) starts by holding a Walford Gazette front page emblazoned with the headline: \u201cIs the BBC really worth it?\u201d Turning to the Queen Vic\u2019s most overworked and undervalued bartender, he says: \u201cIt\u2019s a good question, Tracey, but you have got to ask, what has the BBC ever done for me?\u201d <\/p>\n

The question is soon answered by an eclectic mix of stars making blink-and-you\u2019ll-miss-it appearances. There\u2019s Ian Beale waiting to be served, Chris Martin proving he really does get everywhere by playing piano and Claudia Winkleman in full Traitors mode pulling a pint. \u201cWho cares if they\u2019ve raised two-and-a-half billion for charity?\u201d Romesh points out, bumping into Children in Need mascot Pudsey, as it becomes clear that subtlety is not on the agenda. That\u2019s all before the Weakest Link host has even stepped out into Albert Square \u2013 where Alan Carr is playing EastEnders\u2019 iconic \u201cduff duffs\u201d on the drums, naturally. <\/p>\n

Ranganathan then takes us on a whistlestop tour of some of the Beeb\u2019s most-loved and best-known studios and sets, stumbling into a kitchen where Gavin and Stacey\u2019s Nessa speaks Welsh to plug BBC Radio Cymru, before being chased down by a pair of Daleks and crashing onto a Casualty ward, where Mr Tumble is being treated (this is what I meant by surreal). <\/p>\n

\"TherouxTheroux and his lever of doom threaten to spoil the fun (BBC)<\/p>\n

There\u2019s an interrogation scene with Wallace and Gromit\u2019s nemesis Feathers McGraw, a classroom of kids chanting \u201cBBC Bitesize helps kids learn\u201d in a slightly aggressive manner and Clive Myrie sat at the BBC News studio\u2019s desk, before a trip through the BBC Radio studios, Graham Norton\u2019s chatshow set, Wimbledon and Glastonbury. <\/p>\n

Things get serious with the help of Louis Theroux (whose most recent documentary, Inside the Manosphere, was released on, um, Netflix and whose podcast is produced by Spotify) as he stands by a giant BBC lever and threatens to switch it off. \u201cNone of this has to exist if we don\u2019t want it to,\u201d he tells Ranganathan, who is helpfully handed a folder with some vital stats. \u201cIt says here that the money we pay for the BBC creates over six and a half billion pounds for the economy,\u201d he tells us, stepping onto a Strictly Come Dancing-esque stage where an orchestra is playing and dancers are twirling. It gets a \u201c10\u201d from Strictly judge Anton du Beke \u2013 who is delightfully told to \u201cbog off\u201d by Ranganathan. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s all undeniably heavy-handed, but perhaps coming out all guns blazing is the best thing the BBC can do right now. The charter that sets out the corporation\u2019s funding is currently up for renewal, and with viewing habits having changed drastically in the past 10 years, the licence fee model is facing increasing scrutiny. The fight isn\u2019t just about money either \u2013 in order to justify its need for millions in public funding, the BBC has to prove its cultural relevance. Why not draft in the director behind John Lewis\u2019s tearjerker Christmas ads for a big swing at proving your worth? Sure, one advert isn\u2019t going to save the BBC. But it\u2019s got to have been worth a shot. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":702893,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[96,59,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-702892","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-entertainment","tag-gb","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/702892","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=702892"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/702892\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/702893"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=702892"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=702892"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=702892"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}