Just posted this on the BBC site and thought it was quite good so I thought I'd share it here:

You can imagine the conversation:

Random BBC lackey: Hey Mike, Paul Weller's recorded a traditional song on his new album!

Mike Harding: Oh brilliant! I was really worried I was going to fill that gap in the schedule with something by an actual folk musician. Now I can fit Paul Weller in with Barbara Dickson and a Shadows cover. This is great, I can almost pretend I'm not doing a bl**dy folk music show!

BBC lackey: But you'd better play something to keep the folkies quiet. What about 'Famous Flower of Serving Men' by Martin Carthy and 'Banks of the Nile' by Fotheringay?

Mike: Two folk songs? Is that really necessary? What about if I fill up the time it would have taken to play one of them by telling everyone how they have to text in to vote for which one of the two they want? Then we can play less folk music and make some money off the whinging g*ts!

BBC lackey: Brilliant idea Mike!

He he. Harsh but fair. On it's own I actually quite liked the Paul Weller track, and it would make an interesting diversion within a folk show (I recently slipped Led Zeppelin's 'The Battle of Evermore' into my folk radio show). By the desperate attempt at crossover appeal (including Barbara Dickson with Enya-itus) just cheapens it.

With folk music on the up again, is it not time for a folk music show for folkies? It could be on Radio 3 and presented by Eliza Carthy or that Scottish lady who does Celtic Connections on the Tele. Then we can leave Mike Harding serving the Radio 2 listeners who 'quite liked the Corrs' that the show is obviously aimed at.

Now I'm on Mudcat and not the heavily censored BBC boards I can also use this as a great plug for my online British folk radio show, 'Cool as Folk'. There's a thread about it here . If you agree with what's I've said above, hopefully you should like it.

Cheers, Chris