Letter: Channel 4: the viewer's friend

Sir: Dismayed and provoked by the sight in the Radio Times of sports scheduled for London television showing, I have checked the week from Monday 20 June 1994 to Sunday 26 June.

In that period, BBC 1 scheduled 40 hours and 45 minutes of sport, a daily average of 31 per cent of its station time. The worst day was Tuesday 21 June, which had eight hours 25 minutes (43 per cent) of sport. BBC 2 scheduled 46 hours and eight minutes, a daily average of 35 per cent, and the worst day was Monday, which had nine hours and 23 minutes (52 per cent) of sport. ITV scheduled 24 hours and 20 minutes for the week, a daily average of 15 per cent. Its worst day is Saturday 25 June, when it scored five hours and 35 minutes (23 per cent).

Channel 4, the viewer's friend, had no sport scheduled at all for six of the seven days, showing a mere three hours and 25 minutes on Saturday and an average for the week therefore of only 2 per cent.

My wife and I would be happy to pay an extra licence fee to Channel 4 as a reward for avoiding the current BBC obsession with commercial sport.

Yours sincerely,

S. F. BAILEY

London, NW11

22 June