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ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Annual Report 2013/14: 'Strong performance' for audiences in Scotland

Date: 21.07.2014     Last updated: 23.09.2014 at 09.48

The ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½â€™s Annual Report published today shows that it has been a year of strong performance for ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Scotland, with high quality drama, news, comedy and documentaries.Ìý

In addition there was a record spend on ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ programmes made in Scotland for the whole UK, with 1,000 hours of programmes produced in the 2013 calendar year - double the hours produced five years ago.Ìý

Audiences flocked to the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ for live coverage of Andy Murray’s victory in the 2013 Wimbledon Championships, with an 85% share of viewing in Scotland.ÌýÌý Hebrides: Islands on the Edge reached almost one in three of the Scottish population, almost 6 million viewers across the UK followed ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Scotland primetime drama Shetland, and Mrs Brown’s Boys was the most watched programme across the UK on Christmas Day.Ìý Documentaries Clydebuilt: Ships That Made The Commonwealth, first shown on ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Scotland then across the UK, and Piper Alpha: Fire in the Night, also performed well.Ìý

In news and current affairs, Reporting Scotland remained the most watched daily news programme in Scotland.Ìý Audiences in Scotland continued to turn to the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ for accurate, impartial coverage of major breaking news, with 8 million visitors to the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Scotland news website when the Clutha Bar helicopter crash tragedy took place.Ìý A range of programmes contributed to the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½â€™s comprehensive coverage of the independence referendum in September, with a number of televised debates, documentaries and the introduction of the new Scotland 2014 weeknight news programme.Ìý

ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Radio Scotland reached one in five of the Scottish population every week over the past year, and introduced new weekend and arts programming.Ìý ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ ALBA was watched by more people than ever, although there was a slight fall in the number of Gaelic speakers watching.Ìý Radio nan Gaidheal reached almost two thirds of Gaelic speakers, although this was slightly down on the previous year.Ìý

The Audience Council Scotland, the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Trust’s advisory body, has welcomed the strong performance of the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ in Scotland this year in its Annual Review, and commended the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ news teams in Scotland for their coverage of the Clutha helicopter crash and the independence debate.Ìý This year the Trust consulted the public on editorial guidelines for coverage of the independence referendum.Ìý

However, in 2013/14 47 per cent of people in Scotland thought the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ is good at representing their life in news and current affairs content, and the Audience Council has reiterated concerns about the level of coverage of devolved issues in Scotland by the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½â€™s UK-wide network news.Ìý It has also called for a thorough reassessment of ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ news provision in Scotland, which it says has not changed significantly since the introduction of the Scottish Parliament in 1999.

ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Trustee for Scotland Bill Matthews said:

"This year ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Scotland delivered outstanding, high-quality programmes for Scottish audiences, many of which also resonated across the UK, coupled with a record amount of UK network production in Scotland.Ìý Our Audience Council has reiterated some concerns about news coverage in and of Scotland and Scottish issues, and we will continue to work with the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ to address these.Ìý

"Looking ahead, in the coming days ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Scotland will bring all the drama and excitement of the Commonwealth Games to audiences across the country, and the comprehensive coverage of the independence referendum will continue to ramp up ahead of the vote in September.Ìý The Trust’s and the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½â€™s priority in this is to ensure that the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ delivers accurate, impartial information so that audiences have the information they need to make an informed decision."

The Audience Council for Scotland has also suggested that there should be a single service licence for ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ services in Scotland, to help them work more efficiently together.

Notes to EditorsÌý

  1. The Audience Council Scotland’s Annual Review for 2013/14 can be found here
  2. The ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Annual Report and Accounts for 2013/14Ìýcan be found here
  3. The ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ management annual review for ScotlandÌýcan be found here.