Disappointed viewers of the BBC’s election coverage have slammed the “endless wittering” of the presenters from their London office, displeased there was minimal reporting from the counts despite the broadcaster gloating for having a camera at every count.
Hosts Clive Myrie and Laura Kuenssberg have been panned as a “pointless double act” by some viewers, with several opting to switch the broadcaster off and put on other “superior” channels in its place.
Disgruntled viewers have taken to social media to slam the broadcaster’s coverage, with many critiquing the lack of reporting from polling stations as constituencies have been announced throughout the night.
One viewer said: “Have to say BBC National coverage of the General Election is rubbish. BBC Scotland and Channel 4 [is] much better quality.
“The pointless double act of Myrie & Kuenssberg distracting from the results. BBC have made a real mess of their national coverage.”
A second quipped: “BBC coverage is weird – endless wittering while they actually have reporters at virtually every count.”
The broadcaster had earlier reported that it would be planning unprecedented coverage of election night, with live video being streamed from every single constituency – a first for any UK broadcaster.
“We can’t guarantee this will happen, given issues with connectivity, but we have upped our game and this is the ambition,” said Morwen Williams, Director, Media Operations, BBC. “We will go live with each count on the BBC News website.”
The physical design of the coverage on the screen was also slammed as well. One user said: “Horrible design of the BBC election coverage. They’ve gone for a tabloid look. It makes everything look cramped, flat, incidental. You don’t know where to look.”
“The BBC’s coverage has been f***ing awful. Terrible set, busy graphics, repeated wrong decisions on what to cut to, crap guests, and zero chemistry between two pretty useless hosts. Not its finest hour(s),” another user bemoaned.
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Sir Keir Starmer has hailed an election victory for the Labour Party in the 2024 General Election
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One user felt that the broadcaster unfairly paid more attention to certain parties than others, missing out parts of the “story”.
“I have watched the BBC’s election coverage since 3am UK time. They have barely mentioned the extraordinary Liberal Democrat performance, increasing their seats from 13 in 2019 to a forecast of 70,” they said.
“This ought to be a massive part of the story, I’d have thought.”
Another chimed in: “Terribly biased coverage and unprofessional interviewing on the election coverage tonight. Thought the BBC had standards…? Think again. They seem to be supporting Reform, and against Green & Independents!!”
Another praised Myrie himself but felt that he struggled across the night: “Clive Myrie is undoubtedly a good journalist and presenter but he’s really struggling in the BBC Election coverage format. Apparently, the Beeb had 7 days of rehearsals but it didn’t look like it.”
However, not all opinions across the night were negative. One user said: “Clive Myrie is brilliant – watching him interview James Cleverly, still completely with it & coherent after 10 hrs of analysis!”.
Rishi Sunak held his seat in Richmond and Northallerton, winning 23,059 votes, but in his speech the Prime Minister conceded the General Election to Sir Keir Starmer
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Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and his wife Victoria Starmer greet Mayor of London Sadiq Khan at a watch party for the results of the 2024 General Election in central London
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Another lauded the presenter as “very good tonight”, whilst a third described him as “wonderful”.
He also received praise for his interviewing style: “Quite fond of Clive Myrie introducing himself to down the line interviewees with “Hello [Interviewee], Clive Myrie here”.
The other half of the presenting duo also got some love. Discussing her pink outfit, one user said: “Laura Kuenssberg channelling Margot Robbie as Barbie tonight. Love to see it!”
The design of the broadcast also received praise. One said: “I have found a new love: BBC’s election coverage. They LOVE their big fancy graphics.”
“The production values on the BBC coverage are something else. Those interactive maps and graphics,” a second chimed in.
Sir Keir Starmer has hailed an election victory for the Labour Party in the 2024 General Election after the Conservative Party was demolished across the UK in a brutal defeat, while Reform UK saw a surge.
Labour, which has won a majority, is on course for a landslide victory.
