The BBC have finalised their plans for their coverage of Formula One from the start of the 2009 season, and poke us in the eye with a cocktail stick of cynicism if we're wrong, but it all sounds a bit promising. Oh yes, and The Chain will be back.
After the standards set by ITV in recent years in terms of quantity, if not quality, of broadcasting during each F1 weekend, the BBC have confirmed that all sessions will be live on TV and online. This will include Friday practice sessions, available on BBCi and bbc.co.uk, while the qualifying sessions and races will all be live on TV, as well as being streamed on the website.
With the Beeb's sporting portfolio weakened over recent years after the loss of key live football rights, the corporation is using the reclaiming of F1 as an excuse to turn the sport into it's new "jewel in the crown". Albeit a crown made up of some tape-delayed football highlights and tennis.
The statement released recently also claims that the corporation will give fans the chance to "customize their viewing experience", by allowing access to different video streams and commentaries (presumably just the TV commentary or the Radio 5 Live version), as well as providing "a live leaderboard" and access to onboard cameras. Which all sounds very spiffy.
Crucially from a worldwide perspective, Mark Wilkin, the producer of the coverage, has been quoted as saying that efforts will be made to steer the coverage away from the "Lewis Hamilton Show" approach adopted by ITV. "We want to personalise these guys because we don't know who they are," he bleated relentlessly, "The British public knows who Lewis Hamilton is now, but there are 17 other drivers that we need to get to know as well." So expect some exciting five minute features on Sebastien Buemi's shoe collection any time soon.
All in all, the BBC have set a fairly impressive-sounding stall out ahead of the 2009 opener in Melbourne. Now us cynics are free to sit back, relax, and bitterly find problems with it anyway in a months time.
Oh yes, and The Chain will be used as the theme tune. Brilliant.
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