"Wogan, and until the end of its run was broadcast between 7.30am and 10.00am. Their banter-filled handover became something of a feature. Wogan remained in this role until the end of 1984; in February 1985 he began to present his own thrice-weekly evening programme on BBC 1 television. Wogan was replaced by Ken Bruce, who had presented various Radio 2 programmes after starting at BBC Radio Scotland. Bruce's tenure was brief, his only ""crime"" apparently being that he ""wasn't Terry Wogan"". In 1986 he was moved to the mid-morning slot he still occupies today. During the Bruce era, the show"
"as a Christian to talk about the news"". ""Thought for the Day"" has included both traditionalist and more radical voices, and at times the clerics selected to present in the slot have gone beyond providing spiritual instruction into directly criticising government policy and other social issues. In 1971, the Methodist minister Colin Morris attacked an immigration bill put forward by the government of Ted Heath, arguing that the bill would have denied entry into Britain for not only Saints David, Andrew and George, but Jesus. This led politicians into a public debate about the advisability of the broadcast, and questions"
"protested that the slot was available only to religious views. As a consequence, Professor Richard Dawkins from Oxford University was given a two-and-a-half minute slot to deliver a reflection from an atheist viewpoint, although this was not broadcast in the ""Thought for the Day"" slot itself. The Editors of the BBC World Service's version of the same strand ""Pause for Thought"", were not so dogmatic about secular contributions and between 1997-2002, 26 x 5 minute secular thought pieces were recorded at Bush House with Christopher Templeton, Nicolas Walter and Anthony Grey. However, the BBC commented that it wanted to keep"
"channels, notably local radio. An example is BBC Radio Suffolk's morning show that hosts a Thought for the Day at approximately 7:30. Suffolk's programme differs from the national broadcast in that it is only 1 minute and 45 seconds long. Another difference is that it draws from a more diverse religious base, even including a regular pagan speaker, possibly reflecting the strong interfaith movement in the station's home town of Ipswich. (See Suffolk Interfaith Resource.) BBC Radio Leicester, too, has a daily Thought for the Day (See Suffolk Daily thought for the day). slot, now pre-recorded and broadcast at 6:45."
"March 2015 the prison population of England and Wales was recorded as 49% Christian, 14% Muslim, 2% Buddhist, 2% other religions and 31% no religion. The Communications Act 2003 requires certain broadcasters in the United Kingdom to carry a ""suitable quantity and range of programmes"" dealing with religion and other beliefs, as part of their public service broadcasting. Prominent examples of religious programming include the BBC television programme ""Songs of Praise"", aired on a Sunday evening with an average weekly audience of 2.5 million, and the ""Thought for the Day"" slot on BBC Radio 4. Channels also offer documentaries on,"
"""Thought for the Day"" a unique offering of a faith perspective within an otherwise entirely secular news programme. The last secular ""Pause for Thought"" was recorded for BBC World Service in 2002. An ""Alternative Thought for the Day"" was offered by Unitarian minister Andrew Pakula on Boxing Day 2013, at the request of guest editor Sir Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web and a Unitarian himself. Berners-Lee had wished Pakula to present his thoughts within TFTD, but the BBC hierarchy claimed this was not appropriate, since Pakula describes himself as an atheist. Instead he was allowed to deliver"
"by religious thinkers; often, these are Christian thinkers, but there have been numerous occasions where representatives of other faiths, including Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism, have presented ""Thought for the Day"". Notable contributors to the slot have included major religious figures including Rowan Williams (former Archbishop of Canterbury) and Pope Benedict XVI. Major British rabbis to have contributed include Chief Rabbi Jonathan Lord Sacks of the United Synagogue movement and Lionel Blue of the World Union for Progressive Judaism. Other contributors include Anne Atkins, John L. Bell (Iona Community), Rhidian Brook, Tom Butler (former Bishop of Southwark), Canon Giles"
"John Forrest (producer) References: Songs of Praise Article in the Jewish Chronicles re. the Insight Film Festival johnforrest.tv John Forrest is a UK production creative who has made significant contributions to the UK broadcast production scene since 1970. He currently presents Pause for Thought on BBC Radio 2 and The Daily Service on BBC Radio 4. He was a founder member of staff with BBC Radio Manchester, one of the first established BBC local stations in England. He launched a religious programme aimed at children - 'The Two O'clock Spot', the format of which was later taken up by other"
"Day"" on 24 December 2010. The broadcast followed the Pope's visit to the United Kingdom earlier in the year. In the message, he claimed to be fond of Britain and asked listeners to consider Jesus's birth. The National Secular Society had criticised the BBC for giving the Pope a chance to ""whitewash"" the Catholic Church's record on Catholic child sexual abuse. The message was a ""damp, faltering squib"", commented biologist and atheist Professor Richard Dawkins on the Comment is Free webpages of ""The Guardian"" newspaper. The Radio 4 Thought for the Day format has been copied onto some other BBC"
"Indarjit Singh Indarjit Singh, Baron Singh of Wimbledon (born 17 September 1932), sometimes transliterated Inderjit Singh, is a British journalist and broadcaster, a prominent British Asian active in Sikh and interfaith activities, and a member of the House of Lords. He is editor of the ""Sikh Messenger"" and widely known as a frequent presenter of the ""Thought for the Day"" segment on BBC Radio 4's ""Today programme"", and BBC Radio 2's ""Pause for Thought"". He also contributes to British and overseas newspapers and journals including ""The Times"", ""The Guardian"" and ""The Independent"". He was born in 1932 at Rawalpindi, then"
"queering our pitch"". In 1990, Canon Eric James had planned to use a ""Thought for the Day"" slot to defend those protesting the poll tax, and planned to speak in positive tones of ""the spiritual value of revolt"". The broadcast was set to be broadcast on the first day of the Labour Party conference, but James resigned from the programme and told the ""Church Times"" that he had faced censorship. In 1992, Dr Elaine Storkey in her ""Thought for the Day"" took the Saudi Arabian judiciary to task after a brief BBC World Service report conveyed that Saudi Arabia planned"
"skills amongst creative professionals. BBC ""John Forrest presents the Daily Service"" Retrieved 2012-03-10. BBC ""School Choirs"" Retrieved 2012-03-10. Songs of Praise John Forrest presents the Daily Service John Forrest (producer) References: Songs of Praise Article in the Jewish Chronicles re. the Insight Film Festival johnforrest.tv John Forrest is a UK production creative who has made significant contributions to the UK broadcast production scene since 1970. He currently presents Pause for Thought on BBC Radio 2 and The Daily Service on BBC Radio 4. He was a founder member of staff with BBC Radio Manchester, one of the first established BBC"
"regularly on BBC Radio Scotland's ""Thought For The Day"" slot where she presented, from a Jewish perspective, brief talks designed to cause listeners to pause for reflection. Rabbi Morris also contributed to the BBC radio programme on Matisyahu with her predecessor at Glasgow Reform Synagogue, Rabbi Pete Tobias. Rabbi Morris studied in Vienna for a year while she wrote her Master's Thesis on the subject of Ludwig Frankl. It is available to view on the McGill University website. Rabbi Morris contributed to the book ""God, Doubt and Dawkins"", a Reform response to Richard Dawkins' book ""The God Delusion"". She also"
"usually taking one of the following forms: Some ""Thought for the Day"" contributions can be more explicitly evangelistic while others are more personal, and others have been positively inter-religious with contributors praising faiths different from their own. Leslie Griffiths, a Christian contributor to the programme described his view of the role of faith in contributing to ""Thought for the Day"" as follows: ""I'm a Christian and the essence of my Christianity gives me the angle from which I want to reflect, but it is the lens rather than the subject itself. I don’t want to talk about Christianity, I want"
"There is a ""pick of the week"" re-broadcast on Sunday morning. Speakers are drawn from a wide spectrum of Christian churches, and there is substantial representation from the Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, humanist and occasionally, Jain, communities. But here, contributors are restricted to a mere 90 seconds of broadcast time, which many feel is too short. BBC Radio 2 broadcasts a similar spot on weekday mornings called ""Pause for Thought"". In 2002, 102 people put their names to a letter to the BBC Governors, drawn up by the British Humanist Association, the National Secular Society, and the Rationalist Press Association. This"
"recently his commentary to the Pesach festival prayer book won the Modern Jewish Thought and Experience Dorot Foundation Award in the 2013 National Jewish Book Awards in America. His ""Covenant & Conversation"" commentaries on the weekly Torah portion are read by thousands of people in Jewish communities around the world. Sacks' contributions to wider British society have also been recognised. A regular contributor to national media, frequently appearing on BBC Radio 4's ""Thought for the Day"" or writing the Credo column or opinion pieces in ""The Times"", Sacks was awarded The Sanford St Martin's Trust Personal Award for 2013 for"
"comedy book about the ups and downs of beekeeping. In March 2018, Turnbull revealed he had been diagnosed the previous November with incurable prostate cancer. Bill Turnbull William Robert Jolyon Turnbull (born 25 January 1956) is an English journalist and presenter, who currently works as a presenter for the radio station Classic FM, following many years as a presenter with the BBC. He was the main male presenter of ""BBC Breakfast"" from 2001 until 2016, and currently presents the religious series ""Songs of Praise"" and game show ""Think Tank"". Turnbull was born in Surrey, South East England, to an English"
"as the widespread misuse of the English language, plus ""Devil's Advocate"", ""Beyond Words"", ""The Great Food Gamble"" and ""In God We Doubt: Confessions of a Failed Atheist"". Humphrys is an agnostic, but has a curiosity to test his agnosticism and challenge established religions to see if they can restore his childhood belief in God. In 2006, he presented a BBC Radio 4 programme, titled ""Humphrys in Search of God"" where he spoke to leading British authorities on Christianity, Judaism and Islam to try to restore his faith. Despite his reputation, Humphrys is prepared to send himself up: for example, when"
"Fraser (Inclusive Church founder), Richard Lord Harries of Pentregarth, James Jones (former Bishop of Liverpool), Mona Siddiqui (Muslim professor), Michael Banner (ethicist), Indarjit Lord Singh of Wimbledon (Sikh parliamentarian) and Canon Angela Tilby. ""Thought for the Day"" contributions often follow a similar format: starting with a contemporary issue of public interest or concern, possibly drawn from the news, or from sport, the arts, science or some other area of public life as a lead-in to a spiritual or religious reflection. A report by the Christian think tank Ekklesia described the link between the topical lead-in and the spiritual reflection as"
"atheist. Instead he was allowed to deliver his message an hour earlier, as an ""Alternative Thought for the Day"", with a theistic Unitarian minister appearing in the actual TFTD slot. Pakula used his Boxing Day message to reflect on the underlying meaning of Christmas. In a brief discussion with ""Today"" host Mishal Husain, Pakula said, ""The BBC talks about not allowing people of 'no faith' to present 'Thought for the Day', well, what does 'no faith' mean? Here I am, I'm a minister of religion, leading a congregation talking about peace and love, and I'm considered a person of no"
"in 1971 he withdrew from the programme in protest against alleged representations by the Conservative Party Whips against his criticism on the programme of the party's immigration policy as un-Christian, an incident that caused questions to be asked in the House of Lords. He was still contributing to ""Thought for the Day"" in 2010. In 1978 Colin Morris moved out of the ordinary work of the Methodist ministry to work for the BBC, as head of TV Religious Programmes. He subsequently held the posts of Head of Religious Broadcasting, Special Advisor to the Director-General, and Controller of BBC Northern Ireland."
"season. During the 1980s, increasing social problems in the inner cities led the Church of England to produce a report, Faith in the City. This laid a large portion of the blame for the social issues on the policies of the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher. A number of Anglican bishops appeared on ""Thought for the Day"" speaking out against Thatcher's social policies including Tom Butler, Jim Thompson and Richard Harries. To protect against accusations of bias in the run-up to the 1987 General Election, David Hatch told producers: ""I don't want some lefty bishop on ""Thought for the Day"""
"at Christmas and holiday periods. Sometimes on a Saturday afternoon there is a film on to fill the gap between entertainment shows but very rarely has there been one in that slot. Entertainment programming on BBC One includes game shows such as the ""National Lottery"", ""Total Wipeout"", ""Strictly Come Dancing"" and chat shows such as ""The Graham Norton Show"". The annual 92 hours of religious programming comprise weekly editions of live ""Songs of Praise"", Christian services and other shows from independent production companies. Mentorn Oxford produces ""Heart and Soul"", described as ""a new multi-faith programme featuring a panel and a"
"Association's Inclusive Schools campaign. Following publicity from the campaign, the BBC has agreed to allow a special version of ""Thought for the Day"". It will be presented as ""Thought for the Afternoon"", and will be the first programme of the series not presented by a figure from an established faith. Partly in response to the campaign three different Christian groups have launched advertising campaigns. Slogans include, ""There definitely is a God; so join the Christian Party and enjoy your life.""; ""The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God."", a quote from Psalm 14; and ""There IS a"
"Angela Tilby Angela Tilby (born 1950) is an author and Anglican priest, who is Canon Emeritus at Christ Church, Oxford. Before ordination Tilby spent 22 years as a producer within the BBC's Religious Department. She has made regular appearances on television and radio, including ""Thought for the Day"" on BBC Radio Four. She has also appeared on ""The Brains Trust"" when the programme was presented by Joan Bakewell. In February 2013, Tilby began writing a regular column for the ""Church Times"". Until 2011 she was the vicar of St Benet's Church in Cambridge; prior to this she served as honorary"
"Culture at Oxford Brookes University and then a visiting Professor of Sociology at Goldsmiths, University of London. Robert Beckford is currently Professor of Theology and Culture in the African Diaspora at Canterbury Christ Church University. In 2006/7 he presented shows on BBC Radio WM, first the African-Caribbean programme and then the ""Sunday Breakfast Show"", a blend of news, interviews and chat about religious and ethical issues. In 2004, Beckford presented a documentary called ""God is Black"", which broadcast on Channel 4, which compared white and black people's interpretation of Christianity. It was strongly criticized by conservative Evangelicals in the Anglican"
"the Iona Community in Scotland and by G.I.A. Publications (Chicago) in North America. Several collections of his work have been published in translation in Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, Danish, Dutch, Frisian, Japanese and German. He is a frequent broadcaster, and often presents programmes on the BBC, majoring on contemporary religious songs from various parts of the world. He is quite a regular contributor to ""Thought for the Day"", part of Radio 4's ""Today"" programme. In 2005, the BBC apologised for a broadcast by Bell in which he suggested that a Muslim corporal conscripted into the Israeli army had been jailed for"
"Bishop of Woolwich. He lived in the London Charterhouse. He died on 1 May 2012. Eric James (priest) Eric Arthur James (14 April 1925 – 1 May 2012) was an Anglican priest, Chaplain Extraordinary to HM the Queen, and for many years a regular participant in the ""Thought for the Day"" feature of BBC Radio 4's ""Today"" programme. He was associated with St Albans Cathedral for some years. James was born in Essex. He left Dagenham County High School in Dagenham, Essex, at fourteen, when the Second World War broke out, and worked for seven years at a riverside wharf"
"live from news stories; Peter Rabbi who presents the ""Thought for the Day"" religious slot; and weather reporter Dilly Dilly. ""The News at Bedtime"" is written by the editor of ""Private Eye"" and his close friend and sometime Private Eye contributor Nick Newman, and was inspired by a column they had written for the magazine. Newman said of the writing process that when writing for ""Private Eye"", they find a news story and then a nursery rhyme to fit it. However, for the radio series the process was reversed, ""because it's timeless, rather than topical (though there is an element"
"Lionel Blue Lionel Blue, (6 February 1930 – 19 December 2016) was a British Reform rabbi, journalist and broadcaster, described by ""The Guardian"" as ""one of the most respected religious figures in the UK"". He was best known for his longstanding work with the media, most notably his wry and gentle sense of humour on ""Thought for the Day"" on BBC Radio 4's ""Today programme"". He was the first British rabbi publicly to declare his homosexuality. Blue was born in the East End of London in 1930. His parents were Jews of Russian origin and his father worked as a"
"on a number of television series: Royle's BBC career has also included presenting: He appeared on ""Pause for Thought"" on Terry Wogan's Radio 2 weekday show and writes a weekly column for Woman's Weekly. On 4 March 2007 Royle declared that he would be standing down from his long standing position on Radio 2 presenting Sunday Half Hour, despite this he continues appearances on ""Pause for Thought"" on occasional weekday mornings. He still presents his usual Christmas Day early morning show on Radio 2 between 3.00 – 6.00 am. On Thursday 23 October 2014, Royle accepted position of 'Patron' to"
"studio audience"", followed by ""Life from the Loft"" which is made by the Leeds-based company True North. In 2005 BBC One was criticised for reducing the amount of religious programming, previously 101 hours per year. BBC One broadcasts many comedy programmes, often on Friday nights. These have included the stand-up comedy show ""Live at the Apollo"", sitcom ""Outnumbered"", and satirical quiz show ""Have I Got News for You"". Saturday evening is also a popular slot for a comedy show such as ""Michael McIntyre's Big Show"" and ""The Armstrong and Miller Show"". As the weekly popular music chart programme ""Top of"
"weekly viewership of the show was about twenty-five per cent of the British population. In 1998, the average viewership was between 5 and 6 million. Because of the long time airing of ""Songs of Praise"" following the Sunday evening news, the time slot has become known as the ""God slot"". The show has been accused of ""abandon[ing] its long-standing commitment to straightforward hymns and 'ordinary' people talking about their often very extraordinary lives and faith and becoming increasingly obsessed with celebrities and soft-focus schmaltz"". The show featured in episodes of the BBC comedy television series ""The Vicar of Dibley"". The"