This article appears as part of the Unspun: Scottish Politics newsletter.

Hello and welcome to Funding Challenges, a new show with a terrible title but lots of surprises, most of them bad. Each week, players will compete to predict where the BBC axe will fall next. This time, Celebrity Mastermind, Blankety Blank, and Live at the Apollo went the way of The World Tonight. Next time, who knows? Not even Bargain Hunt is safe.

The loss of a Mastermind spin-off is not just a matter of regret for anyone who enjoyed besting celebs in general knowledge. The announcement follows a pattern that has become increasingly apparent since the arrival of Matt Brittin as the corporation’s Director-General. It is less official policy and more of a shared understanding, as is the BBC management way. 

In its bid to save £500 million over the next three years, the BBC has adopted a strategy of trying to stay ahead of bad news. It is like a cartoon character on a runaway train, frantically laying track just ahead of the wheels. As long as it keeps up, the train carries on. Meanwhile, staff and shows are pieces of track sacrificed for the wider cause. 

It has not been the best of weeks for the BBC for lots of reasons, but best to limit them to two or we will be here all night. First came the news that Netflix is now the button an increasing number of us press when deciding what to watch. An Ofcom survey found that some 26% go for the red on white button first, 25% for the BBC and 15% for ITV. Coming up fast is YouTube, with........

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