Prince Philip media coverage: how much is too much?
BBC received a record number of complaints after clearing its entire schedule to cover royal death

A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
The coverage of the death of Prince Philip has become the “most complained-about moment in British television history”, with the BBC inundated with more than 100,000 complaints after clearing its schedule to cover the news.
What was the reaction to the coverage?
At least 110,994 people contacted the BBC to complain about its decision to remove some of the nation’s best-loved TV shows, including EastEnders and the MasterChef final, from its schedule to broadcast tributes to the Queen’s husband, who died on Friday aged 99, reports The Guardian.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
BBC One and Two dedicated their evening programming to Prince Philip, while BBC Four was taken off the air entirely.
The BBC was not the only broadcaster to adjust its viewing schedule. ITV and Channel 4 both carryied extensive coverage of the death, although Channel 4 did broadcast the “majority” of its peak schedule, which included hit shows such as Gogglebox and The Circle.
Several broadcasters found their viewing figures dropped significantly, with the BBC reporting that BBC Two lost “two-thirds of its audience”, while BBC One’s “dropped six per cent week-on-week”. It also reported that ITV lost 60% of its Friday night audience, in comparison to the previous week.
Such was the level of anger over the BBC’s decision that the broadcaster set up a dedicated form on its website to allow viewers to complain about the coverage – “in recognition of the volume of complaints”, said the organisation – but this was later removed.
Why did people complain?
The BBC’s coverage “appears to have elicited one of the most negative reactions to BBC programmes ever seen”, wrote The Guardian.
In an internal complaints log seen by the newspaper, a member of the public complained: “Coverage of this event took up the entire evening broadcast to the exclusion of all other topics, including the ongoing topic of the pandemic. Some coverage was justified, but not to this extent.”
Another said that while the news of Prince Philip’s death was “sad”, it did not need to be broadcast on “every single one of its channels”.
“Why [not] just put it on one channel for those that want to listen to that drivel and the rest of us can have a bit of music,” the complainant continued.
Did the BBC get it wrong?
The BBC may have received a vast number of complaints, but “past experience suggests the anger of those who missed the MasterChef final” would “pale in comparison to the outrage that would have greeted a BBC response deemed insufficiently reverential”, wrote Jasper Jackson in the i newspaper.
One “insider” speaking to The Sun seems to have felt much the same way: “I feel sorry for the Beeb. They would be criticised and accused of not being respectful enough if they didn’t lay the programmes on. But they seem to have left many people very cross.”
But former BBC newsreader Simon McCoy, who recently left to join GB News, appeared to join those criticising the coverage, writing on Twitter: “BBC1 and BBC2 showing the same thing. And presumably the News Channel too. Why? I know this is a huge event. But surely the public deserves a choice of programming.”
The previous record for complaints was the BBC’s screening of Jerry Springer – The Opera in 2005, which led to 63,000 complaints.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Sorcha Bradley is a writer at The Week and a regular on “The Week Unwrapped” podcast. She worked at The Week magazine for a year and a half before taking up her current role with the digital team, where she mostly covers UK current affairs and politics. Before joining The Week, Sorcha worked at slow-news start-up Tortoise Media. She has also written for Sky News, The Sunday Times, the London Evening Standard and Grazia magazine, among other publications. She has a master’s in newspaper journalism from City, University of London, where she specialised in political journalism.
-
Microscopic items
Cartoons
By The Week Staff Published
-
The daily gossip: Chevy Chase says 'Community' wasn't 'funny enough' for him, Golden Globes to add a category for blockbuster movies, and more
The daily gossip: September 26, 2023
By Brendan Morrow Published
-
Equality
Cartoons
By The Week Staff Published
-
What have we learned in King Charles’s first year?
Today's Big Question The monarch is ‘stamping his personality’ on the role and is definitely not a ‘caretaker’, says Palace source
By Chas Newkey-Burden Published
-
What does the royal family actually do?
feature From official state duties to charitable pursuits, most of the royals keep themselves busy
By Harriet Marsden Published
-
What would the UK be like without a monarchy?
Today's Big Question The British public still broadly favours the royals but support is waning among younger people
By Keumars Afifi-Sabet Published
-
Prince Harry and Meghan: ‘near catastrophic car chase’ in the spotlight
Talking Point Brush with US paparazzi has echoes of Princess Diana but some have questioned the timing
By Jamie Timson Published
-
The highlights and lowlights from King’s coronation weekend
feature Music, mischief and Penny Mordaunt widely praised, while Met Police arresting protesters provokes criticism
By Harriet Marsden Published
-
Coronation countdown: a ‘tightrope’ for the royal family
Under the Radar Monarchy to balance celebration with awareness of the complex relationship between British subjects and their ruler
By The Week Staff Published
-
The ‘diplomat monarch’: will King’s coronation revitalise British soft power?
Today's Big Question Supporters say Charles is foreign relations asset but others question whether the newly crowned monarch can boost the UK’s influence
By Harriet Marsden Published
-
Buckingham Palace arrest fuels coronation security fears
Speed Read Security minister outlines massive operation amid concerns about threats, protests and potential obsessives
By Harriet Marsden Published