Happy Burns Day!

[McClef]

The Beeb gives nothing away for free. British citizens are heavily taxed for their services, all other go hang. But they run Robert Burns' poetry without paying royalties!

I understand, that with very few exceptions, royalty rights expire between 50-95 years (according to country) after the death of the author/composer etc.

Berne Convention and all that.

Robert Burns has been gone too long to qualify.

[auld argonian]

I'm sure that, in this case, they're claiming the rights to the performance and not the material.

Best

AA

[Lallans]

I understand, that with very few exceptions, royalty rights expire between 50-95 years (according to country) after the death of the author/composer etc.

Berne Convention and all that.

Robert Burns has been gone too long to qualify.

Yes, I was making a joke there. They want to charge for, or at least restrict access to, their use of material that is a Scottish National Treasure, as well as a human one, and is available free to them.

But regarding the legalities, I will draw your attention to the precedent set for Handel's Messiah, for which the Foundlings Hospital has be awarded perpetual royalities. Robert lost in life, his family lost after his death. But that's a whole new topic and Burns Day is over.

[McClef]

Another example would be the royalty rights to Peter Pan with the monies going to Great Ormonde Street Childrens Hospital in London.

But such examples are still indeed rare.

The issue is not the BBC trying to withhold Scottish national treasures from the world, it is the costs and legalities of content due to agreements made carried by the BBC on the internet being allowed outside the UK. In fact not everything is available even within the UK - feature films and sport for example are often not available on iplayer.

http://iplayerhelp.external.bbc.co.u...availableprogs

Here the issue clearly isn't Burns but the contractual/agreement stuff with the artist performing Burns who is a member of Equity, the actors and performers union who set various terms and conditions Repeat fee issues etc could all add to extra expense without compensating income.

And it's not just the BBC - folk have often posted links that can be accessed within the USA (Hulu for example) that produce the same problem elsewhere.

Right I'm off to watch a BBC Scotland programme about Burns on iplayer.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode...rns_Episode_1/

Frustrating I'm afraid to those with the wrong ip address.

[Lallans]

I'm saddened just now, well sort of, to hear on my other favoritie leftwing network, the CBC or CEEB, that the BBC has announced major cuts to its international and other programming, with hundreds (?) of layoffs. Perhaps they have been laying the groundwork for foreign user fees all along- which- AHA!- is what I've been suspecting.

The background of all this, and also my sincere citizen-at-large concern, is that the BBC is not functioning as an ambassador for the UK anymore; they are cutting you guys off from world exposure with these internet practices and other restrictive and pricing shenanigans.

[Holy Hector]

A very good and happy Robbie Burns day it was indeed, Here at Luther Court we celebrated with a shortened version of a Burns' dinner of our own. The Haggis was piped in properly (thank you David M), addressed and then parcelled out and consumed by the appreciative "clan" which had gathered. Some of the Bard's poetry was read and sung, toasts were raised, and a bonnie time was had by those in attendance.

[MacConnachie]

We held our 21st annual local celebration o' the Bard on Saturday the 15th (the extra day of the three-day weekend allows me time to recover enough from the festivities to actually function when I return to work on the Tuesday following.) We do a "real" haggis and a Portabello Mushroom haggis, and the event has always been potluck, so at times there is an interesting array. I also made a pot of "turk-a-leekie" soup this year, but instead of prunes or currants, I added "Craisins," the dried cranberry product. Still cannot seem to convince newbies -- by signs and other means -- that Bashit Neeps and Champit Tatties IS/ARE NOT the same as mashed potatoes, so some ends up going to waste. We fairly typically have 60 to 65 folk show, and it's a celebration, not a more formal Burns' Dinner with all the "pageantry" as one of our folk has called it. As good a selection of single malts this year as we've seen for several, and a vast improvement over last year. Sometimes, there are mounds of shortbread -- I had some this year that had cornmeal added in, so the bits of corn hull were a bit of a surprise to someone who's used to having his shortbread melt in his mouth when sippin' whisky with it! All in all, a great time was had by most everyone in attendance. As I told my co-conspirator and co-organizer of the event, though, "Glad we did it, glad it's over."

Last night, I listened to several CDs (how archaic, I know) by performers doing Burns works (Andy M. Stewart, Gillian Bowman, The Sangsters), toasted the Great Man with at least 3 types of single malt, called a friend or twa, and recited the last stanza of "To a Louse" to an old friend over the telephone, so I'm hoping that I've done my part for another year!

Craig Ferguson talked a bit about Burns on his late-night show yesterday, recited most of the first stanza of "Address to a Haggis," mentioned the title of my favorite ribald Burns poem, "Nine _____ Will Please a Lady," and reckoned that Burns was famous for three things . . .


"And man to man, the world o'er, shall brithers be, for a' that . . ."