By JOAN NEWTON
THE first week of 1960 has been full of 1959. Nearly every day on both radio and television there has been one of those programmes about the events of the last decade.
1 am a glutton for them and have tried not to miss any. But, inevitably. there was the clash on the two television channels and some of ITV's programme on the Fifties was missed.
Enough has been said about all these programmes in the secular press. How sad it is that there could have been no glorious religious programme—preferably on TV —of all the major religious events over the past years. But. as we live in a singularly non-religious age, I suppose nobody thought of it.
ASTONISHING
IT is true that the Archbishop of 2 Canterbury gave a short talk on New Year's Eve. I thought the most astonishing thing about this talk was the way he kept any mention of God out of it—at least until nearly the end of his allotted 10 minutes
I know both channels are proud of the amount of time they give over to religious programmes hut,
quite honestly. much of this precious time is wasted talking round religion or is given to subjects which could perfectly well be labelled "Lectures on Good Citizenship".
This is so true of Anglican programmes and especially of their
late night TV programmes on Wednesdays that I think it is a crying shame. if only Catholics could be allowed to use this time occasionally for real religious programmes in which Our Lord and the love of Our Lord were mentioned frequently, it would be a wonderful thing.
REAL EXPERTS
return to the various news programmes that reviewed the '505 and the years before them— I would like to mention one in
particular that shone far above the others. This was last Saturday's "From Our Own Correspondent" (which is to be heard every Saturday at 8.15 a.m. on the Home).
In this Thomas Barman, the BBC's diplomatic correspondent, spoke with other BBC correspondents all over the world about the events of the last year. There were no pictures to distract and, somehow. that half-hour's programme packed in more real news and discussion of events than all the more elaborate TV programmes put together.
The main reason was because these correspondents know their subjects well and could get straight to the heart of the matter each time. They are not news commentators but real experts. The TV still needs a weekly programme like this.
1 will end with a joyful welcome to BBC TV's version of Dorothea Brooking's production of Frances Hodgson-Burnett's "The Secret Garden". InGillian Ferguson, Miss Brooking has found the perfect Mary Lennox. This serial must not he missed. It is to be seen every Sunday evening about 5 p.m.