Dear Folkiedave,
                As we discussed earlier I e-mailed my suggestions concerning the voting process of the BBC Folk Awards programme and Mr. John Leonard had the good grace to telephone me to discuss the points and explain the regime Smooth Ops. are subject to rather than reply by means of e-mail. By doing so he felt that points arising could be discussed at the time rather than require another e-mail full of questions. Speaking with him, I get the impression that he is also aware of the need for a belief that a popular vote has been met and ways to achieve this is never far from his mimd. It appears, especially since that business of a number of t.v. programmes fiddling with competition results, the BBC, quite rightly, require absolute transparency in anything involving the public.
             Regarding the candidates, John Leonard explained that for the first vote the 170 or more selectors are invited to name ANYBODY they thought were the best in each category for the year with the proviso there was no business, folk circle, social or family interests between them that would influence their choice. They are at liberty to name popular artists, floor talent, long time established performers, new boy/girl on the block, etc. From that vote the top four are put forward for the final choice. Regarding my suggestion of e-mail voting, it is not the logistics of handling or cost but the ability of interested parties such as fan bases or artists touting for support to sway the figures. I feel his explanation goes a long way to satisfy my query and would like to think the programme makers are aware of the public concern in this area among folk music enthusiasts.
I must thank him for taking time out call me to discuss points they regard having much relevance to their output.
                                             All The Best,
                                                 John