Media / Talk of the Trade: Fewer golden moments

INTRODUCING the BBC document John Birt, the new Director-General, was challenged about the BBC allowing ads in its recycled programmes shown on the satellite channel UK Gold. Mr Birt put the complaints down to 'the shock of the new'. The inserted ads are, however, also the source of another tricky problem: the newsletter Cable and Satellite Express points out that because the half-hour comedies last . . . well, half an hour, the ads make them spill out of their time slot and upset the schedules. The answer? Chop a few minutes out of each episode.