BBC boss Greg Dyke has signalled that the plug is to be pulled on lifestyle shows in favour of more arts and current affairs. But the promises may prove difficult to keep.

LAURENCE Llewelyn-Bowen can keep his ideas for turning bedrooms into bordellos to himself. Linda Barker needn't bother coming back from the I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! jungle as her services may no longer be required. Their days as TV interior designers may be numbered.

Lifestyle shows have had their day on BBC2. The BBC Director General Greg Dyke, no less, has said that the channel will become less dependent on such programmes. I'll believe it when I don't see it. Only the other week, this column was reporting that home makeover shows were being overtaken by property shows in popularity, but there remain plenty of viewers wanting to see the so-called experts decorate, spring clean and generally make as good as new other people's places.

But the BBC's statement of promises for 2003/2004 signals the end for lifestyle shows. The gaping holes in BBC2's schedules, where every other programme seems to contain the word "home" or "garden", will be filled by a new monthly analysis series and regular peak-time arts programmes. Allegedly.

The comments of Jana Bennett, the BBC's director of television, rather seem to contradict Dyke's words. She talks of a change of emphasis, rather than volume, declaring: "We want to put more arts and current affairs programmes at 9pm, to give them prominence in the schedule."

She adds: "This is not duty programming, but impactful programming." And that sounds like gobbledegook to me.

More importantly, the promises relating to the type of programmes she and Dyke are talking about on BBC2 states that the channel will show 230 hours of current affairs and 200 hours of arts and music this year - the same as last year.

Media observers note the BBC statement came before the 2002/2003 promises have been assessed by the governors in July. It came in the same week the Communications Bill reaches the committee stage in the House of Lords, and pressure is mounting to bring the BBC under stricter control.

The promises also include a new series of documentaries for BBC1, as well as a previously-announced arts strand Imagine, presented by Alan Yentob, currently presenting a three-part documentary about Leonardo Da Vinci on BBC1. Imagine merely plugs the hole left by the end of long-running arts programme Omnibus.

Arts programmes have long been getting a raw deal on BBC1 and BBC2 in favour of more tabloid-style entertainment shows, with titles like My Worst Week and Tabloid Tales.

Melvyn Bragg has lobbied consistently for more arts coverage on television. As his own South Bank Show on ITV1 seems to be scheduled later and later on a Sunday night, he might well be having a word with commercial TV bosses too. There, arts is a four-letter word.

The BBC is worried by criticism that its schedules aren't distinctive enough, looking more like ITV than ITV. They like talking about landmark series, which usually involve a heavyweight presenter such as David Attenborough. They also like flogging a good idea until it drops. Walking With Dinosaurs was such a hit that we now have the less exciting (and less watched) Walking With Cavemen.

Rather than make them stand out, more documentaries in peak time will only make the BBC schedules resemble Channel 4's or even five's. Both have had considerable success by consistently putting documentaries in peak time. Four has also had success with its historical programmes, fronted by David Starkey and other TV-friendly academics.

As for "more and better current affairs programming at accessible times on the main channels", this could see Panorama reinstated in the peaktime schedules rather than the Sunday night graveyard slot occupied at the moment.

Hopefully, it doesn't mean more Test The Nation-style viewer-participation survey shows that prove nothing at all, other than Anne Robinson is the weakest link as a presenter of such programmes.

We might also ask where all these arts programmes are going to come from. Yentob himself hinted this in an interview with The Stage newspaper, where he was quoted as saying digital channel BBC4 will be used to develop more arts programmes for the main terrestrial channels. He added that didn't mean BBC1 and BBC2 wouldn't be doing arts programmes. It would mean the best of the stuff on the digital arts channels would be transfered to BBC1 and BBC2. As around half the population is unable to see BBC4, it wouldn't exactly be classed as a repeat.

It will be interesting to see if the schedules get the makeover promised by Dyke. The problem is that their promises are vague enough to prevent anyone calling them fibbers when, in 12 months time, no one has noticed much difference.

Published: 03/05/2003