Quote: Mark Laurie "Lote tuqiri playing for Japan, rent a winger.
On a vaguely serious point about taking 455 to Brazil, I have no idea how the commercial side of TV works but there must be scope to combine with other nations. E.g a deal with an Aussie company, bbc do the rugby, aus co do the rowing? Do Eddie butler and sir Clive need to be out there, they could talk tripe and ignore forward passes from the uk.
Just now in the gb v Japan game I could hear another English commentator in the background, appears to be plenty of scope for savings to me'"
455 really isnt an awful lot considering there are 306 events in 28 sports over 16 days often simultaneously that need to be presented not only on tv, but radio and web too.
People think most of them will be presenters, commentators and pundits out there getting paid a fortune for a jolly, the reality is that most of that 455 will be cameramen, technicians, directors, producers, engineers etc, as well as freelance journalists.
Its an absolute myth that the BBC is the incredibly wasteful behemoth put about by free market ideologues who hate the fact that there isnt a profit to be snaffled up by making the product poorer and more expensive. For a comparison that 455 is 40% less than the number at london 2012, and about 10% less than Beijing 2008. NBC from the free market utopia that is the US will send more than 2000 staff, will screen less live coverage and will have that coverage interrupted by commercial breaks.