{"id":9808,"date":"2014-05-30T15:36:45","date_gmt":"2014-05-30T19:36:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=9808"},"modified":"2014-05-30T15:38:43","modified_gmt":"2014-05-30T19:38:43","slug":"today-choppy-seas-for-the-shipping-forecast","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/05\/today-choppy-seas-for-the-shipping-forecast\/","title":{"rendered":"Today: Choppy seas for the Shipping Forecast"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Peeters_Sea_storm.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-9810\" src=\"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Peeters_Sea_storm.jpg\" alt=\"Peeters_Sea_storm\" width=\"870\" height=\"330\" srcset=\"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Peeters_Sea_storm.jpg 870w, https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Peeters_Sea_storm-300x113.jpg 300w, https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Peeters_Sea_storm-100x37.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Since the dawn of time, there is, there was, and there always has been&#8230;the <em>Shipping Forecast.<\/em> We set our clocks by it. Despite\u00a0the complexities of our planet&#8211;war, famine, daytime television&#8211;the <em>Shipping Forecast<\/em> has been there for us. \u00a0Our steady friend amid the choppy seas of life. Our rock of Gibraltar&#8230;our security blanket.<\/p>\n<p>Regardless of our diverse beliefs (or unbeliefs), it seems we <em>all<\/em> believe in the <em>Forecast<\/em>.\u00a0We somehow find ourselves regularly returning to its\u00a0altar, <a title=\"And now, the Shipping Forecast\u2026\" href=\"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/04\/and-now-the-shipping-forecast\/\">taking\u00a0comfort in\u00a0its soothing\u00a0ministry<\/a>.\u00a0And why should we not? It&#8217;s been there, without fail, for <em>ninety<\/em> years.<\/p>\n<p>That is&#8230;until\u00a0this morning.<\/p>\n<p>This morning, BBC Radio 4, who produces the <em>Shipping Forecast<\/em> experienced some technical difficulties. These, alas,\u00a0led to a failure to broadcast the <em>Forecast<\/em> for the first time in, yes, <em>ninety years<\/em>. \u00a0Andy Sennit <a title=\"The Guardian\" href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/media\/2014\/may\/30\/bbc-chipping-forecast-fail-broadcast-radio-4\" target=\"_blank\">shares this article from <em>The Guardian<\/em><\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>It was early-morning chaos and warnings of impending armageddon when BBC Radio 4 failed to broadcast the Shipping Forecast for the first time in more than 90 years.<\/p>\n<p>The BBC radio service is something of an institution, metronomically broadcasting four forecasts a day since 1924, a routine which failed for the first time at 5.20am on Friday.<\/p>\n<p>A technical glitch meant the BBC&#8217;s World Service was played in its place, a gaffe that prompted listeners to take to Twitter to voice their bewilderment.<\/p>\n<p>Kirsty Connell said: &#8220;Eep. The shipping forecast didn&#8217;t get broadcast on @BBCRadio4 this morning. Isn&#8217;t that the sign of impending nuclear armageddon?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Jordan Rowland added: &#8220;No shipping forecast? If UK submarines don&#8217;t get shipping forecast, don&#8217;t they launch nuclear attack?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The BBC was only able to resolve the issue at 5.40am when it cut back to the Radio 4 programme. Friday morning&#8217;s Shipping Forecast eventually aired 6.40am.<\/p>\n<p>[<a href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/media\/2014\/may\/30\/bbc-chipping-forecast-fail-broadcast-radio-4\" target=\"_blank\">Continue reading&#8230;<\/a>]<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>If this news has greatly unhinged you (as it has me) rest assured: \u00a0the world continues. Thus the<em> Forecast<\/em> will await us at its regularly scheduled time tomorrow morning.<\/p>\n<p>(Readers, thanks for letting me wax poetic.)<\/p>\n<p><em>Confused? If you&#8217;re wondering what the Shipping Forecast is, <a title=\"And now, the Shipping Forecast\u2026\" href=\"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/04\/and-now-the-shipping-forecast\/\" target=\"_blank\">check out this previous post.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Since the dawn of time, there is, there was, and there always has been&#8230;the Shipping Forecast. We set our clocks by it. Despite\u00a0the complexities of our planet&#8211;war, famine, daytime television&#8211;the Shipping Forecast has been there for us. \u00a0Our steady friend amid the choppy seas of life. Our rock of Gibraltar&#8230;our security blanket. Regardless of our [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3,305,288],"tags":[1347,2964,2965,2734,2966],"class_list":["post-9808","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","category-nostalgia","category-radio-history","tag-bbc-radio-4","tag-bbc-radio-4-shipping-forecast","tag-no-shipping-forecast","tag-shipping-forecast","tag-shipping-forecast-failure"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-2yc","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":8333,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/04\/and-now-the-shipping-forecast\/","url_meta":{"origin":9808,"position":0},"title":"And now, the Shipping Forecast&#8230;","author":"Thomas","date":"April 11, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"When I lived in the UK, I would often fall asleep and\/or wake up to the Shipping Forecast:\u00a0a BBC Radio broadcast of weather reports and forecasts for the seas around the coasts of the British Isles. Though I had, of course, no real need of the Forecast, on many occasions\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;AM&quot;","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"shipping-forecast-locations","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/shipping-forecast-locations.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/shipping-forecast-locations.png?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/shipping-forecast-locations.png?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":29909,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/12\/atlas-obscura-this-weather-report-has-been-making-waves-for-150-years\/","url_meta":{"origin":9808,"position":1},"title":"Atlas Obscura: &#8220;This weather report has been making waves for 150 years.&#8221;","author":"Thomas","date":"December 31, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Eric McFadden (WD8RIF), who notes that the excellent website, Atlas Obscura, recently featured The Shipping Forecast: Why a Maritime Forecast Is So Beloved in the United Kingdom For the penultimate song on their 1994 album Parklife, Blur chose the swirling, meditative epic, \u201cThis Is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;AM&quot;","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/shipping-forecast-ship.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/shipping-forecast-ship.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/shipping-forecast-ship.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/shipping-forecast-ship.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":61113,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2024\/11\/the-shipping-forecast-a-special-1993-filmed-version\/","url_meta":{"origin":9808,"position":2},"title":"The Shipping Forecast: A Special 1993 Filmed Version","author":"Thomas","date":"November 15, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and good friend, BJ Leiderman, who shares the following video on YouTube--a special Shipping Forecast tribute: On 18 December 1993, as part of the Arena Radio Night, BBC Radio 4 and BBC 2 collaborated on a simultaneous broadcast so the shipping forecast \u2013 read\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Longwave&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Longwave","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/longwave\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/shipping-forecast-locations.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/shipping-forecast-locations.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/shipping-forecast-locations.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13047,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/04\/shipping-forecast-tribute\/","url_meta":{"origin":9808,"position":3},"title":"Shipping Forecast tribute","author":"Thomas","date":"April 25, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to @realmarkfahey who shares this tribute to the Shipping Forecast via Twitter: https:\/\/twitter.com\/bbcradio4\/status\/591484237200510976 If the embedded tweet above does not appear, click this link to listen via the web.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;AM&quot;","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"shipping-forecast-locations","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/shipping-forecast-locations.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/shipping-forecast-locations.png?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/shipping-forecast-locations.png?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14959,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/09\/the-demise-of-longwave-could-lead-to-the-end-of-the-shipping-forecast\/","url_meta":{"origin":9808,"position":4},"title":"The demise of longwave could lead to the end of the Shipping Forecast","author":"Thomas","date":"September 29, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Erica, who writes: \"I saw this article about the demise of the Shipping Forecast on Radio 4 Longwave and thought readers might be interested: http:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/culture\/tvandradio\/bbc\/11892805\/End-of-Shipping-Forecast-on-long-wave-radio-could-leave-sailors-high-and-dry.html I'm not a fan of DAB radio and my bedroom radio aerial has to be positioned just so to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Longwave&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Longwave","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/longwave\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"shipping-forecast-locations","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/shipping-forecast-locations.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/shipping-forecast-locations.png?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/shipping-forecast-locations.png?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":47606,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/video-how-the-uk-shipping-forecast-is-made\/","url_meta":{"origin":9808,"position":5},"title":"Video: How the UK shipping forecast is made","author":"Thomas","date":"February 4, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, David (G4EDR), who writes: I know that you and many of your readers of the SWLing Post (myself included) have a fascination with the UK Shipping Forecast so thought you may be interested in this YouTube video showing how the Met Office prepare the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Broadcasters&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Broadcasters","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/broadcasters\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/Met-Office-Shipping-Forecast-e1503570469366.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/Met-Office-Shipping-Forecast-e1503570469366.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/Met-Office-Shipping-Forecast-e1503570469366.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/Met-Office-Shipping-Forecast-e1503570469366.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 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