Talk:Peter Woods (journalist)

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Morecambe and Wise Christmas Show

It was the 1977 Morecambe and Wise Christmas show that Peter Woods appeared, not 1973. —Preceding unsigned comment added by SimonUK (talk • contribs) 14:45, 9 December 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Sinus medication?

does anyone have details of the broadcast in which Woods began slurring his words, subsequently blaming it on his sinus medication? AuntFlo (talk) 14:05, 9 May 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Found a reference to it. It appears to have been trade figures which caused him problems, rather than the unemployment figures alleged on The News Quiz of 8 May. Philip Cross (talk) 17:16, 11 May 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I can't quote a reference, but I can give an eye witness statement. Peter Woods was reading the BBC 2 news, relatively late evening, something around 10 or 11 - I think at the time that they slotted in a news bulletin in the middle of a Newsnight-style programme, the BBC did a 9 O'Clock News at the time (hence the name of the comedy show Not the Nine O'Clock News from around that era). I didn't usually watch that news (I'd be around 17 at the time) but had changed channel for some reason (the reason being that there was nothing on BBC 1 or ITV - the joys of a choice of 3 channels to watch) and came across Peter Woods who was drunk - it just had to be watched. He struggled through a couple of items then I clearly remember that he tried to read an article about the widening trade deficit - I think there was a caption on with the figures at the time so you just heard him and didn't see his face as he was speaking - and the trade deficit was about 200 million or billion pounds. He said (and you need to imagine his pompous accent to go with it) "The trade deficit for last month was 2 hun..., twenty, er, 2 hu... AWFULLY big." Cue rapid fade out. I am certain that he did not swear on air. I've seen a reference to one of the newsroom people who was there at the time and I don't think he remembered it quite correctly though it is quite similar to my recollection. Much jollity was had at school the next day discussing it and Peter Woods was off air for some time after. Hard to blame him, the BBC ran a bar on site where you would see all the great and the good gather, quaffing their G & Ts. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 94.169.8.36 (talk) 11:06, 18 January 2011 (UTC)[reply]

None of Woods' colleagues at the BBC at the time believe this 'sinus medication' explanation. He was quite evidently drunk. This wasn't particularly unusual in UK TV news at the time, ITN's Reginald Bosanquet and Alastair Burnet being other notorious boozers, but on this occasion Woods overdid it and his career never recovered. Both the BBC and ITN had in house bars which were enthusiastically patronised by journalists (I worked at ITN in the early 80s and remember the drinking culture well.) The article currently gives equal weight to the 'sinus medication' explanation, which I feel is misleading. --87.112.165.193 (talk) 20:19, 30 July 2011 (UTC)[reply]