Just to keep one important aspect of the thread going...

I understand your cynicism, Diane, and you're right about the pressures placed on Smoops by the BBC, but I know that John is open to ideas and reason, and is keen to make what improvements he can within the constraints. We discussed the issue of categories in detail and at length across his desk, and it was clear that he saw some (much?) merit in my argument, and seemed to warm to some of my ideas re re-categorisation. He certainly did take on board much of what I said about openness and BBC standards, and has made some changes accordingly - though not as many as I personally would have liked to see. That said, I changed some of my opinions as a result of what he told me too, and I came away reasonably content, though still wanting to keep up pressure for some small but significant improvements. Naturally he feels it's basically not broken (though willing to consider improvements, specially if they'll make life easier for Smoops) so is loath to put time, effort and risk into any major fixes. I don't think the awards are broken either, but I do have serious concerns about other issues within the 'folk industry' and see the awards as one of the few useful tools in the box. My suggestions for change are all around that. I always stress that I'm personally very happy with the basic end result - things are looking better than ever this year - and merely want to remove unnecessary confusion (Jiggers' issue goes to the heart of a big one), provide a smoother and more open process, and make the awards work harder in terms of PR benefit for 'folk.'

Yes, it might be a good idea to talk to some trustees (I try to bring the subject into the conversation if I'm talking to any suits - which I rarely do these days), but if so, then you would need to make a cogent argument based on a sound knowledge of the existing rationale and budget. Meanwhile, Jiggers might be better off making his or her suggestions where John might read them.

Tom