Military charity and media organisation BFBS will continue to try and maintain delivery of its services to entertain, inform, connect and champion the UK armed forces for as long as possible during the COVID-19 pandemic…
To maintain the safety of BFBS staff, most employees are working from home, but the core services are continuing to ensure we can support our military audience during this difficult time. Overseas, BFBS is working with partners to support the needs of specific military communities by installing satellite TV points into coronavirus isolation camps – as well as providing more set top boxes and radios where they are needed.
BFBS TV is running a full service for overseas audiences, with the best of what is on offer at home. Alongside the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5, its specially-compiled BFBS Extra channel continues to provide a schedule of blockbuster entertainment and movie premieres.
As live sport is so important to the armed forces, where it exists, BFBS TV will continue to show it – as well as bringing you the best in other sporting coverage available courtesy of our relationships with the main sports providers here in the UK.
Forces News will continue for as long as possible with regular radio news bulletins and a short news summary at 12:30, together with a full half-hour of news at 17:30 on BFBS TV and Forces TV, focusing on the armed forces’ efforts to combat Covid-19.
BFBS Radio’s live and local content has never been so important and across BFBS’ locations in the UK and overseas, staff are responding to the needs of their specific communities. Whether for entertainment, morale or connecting people together, telling the stories of support, amplifying the messages of local commanders and administrations, or running features with medical specialists, BFBS Radio remains live on air.
BFBS Radio has also added a second daily live programme to connect the global forces family in the UK and overseas with a new worldwide afternoon sequence. BFBS Radio 2 overseas has a new schedule to ensure that Boris Johnson’s daily update is carried live via BBC Radio 4’s PM programme.
BFBS Gurkha Radio is also delivering live and local services across the global Nepali speaking community in the UK, Nepal and Brunei providing a full news service. And, with cinemas closing, if you have access to our Cinelink service, you can watch recent movie releases and 1000s of other films.
Our Forces Media Academy remains open online and our hugely popular online Social Media Spouses programme has just started its next course. Finally, we’re still running recruitment campaigns, producing videos and podcasts, and have set up a special ‘content taskforce’ to help the armed forces combat misinformation about COVID-19.