A FORGETFUL MARTHA

*

The World at One was back on biased form today, returning to last week's assault on the Conservatives. David Cameron's comments about the stifling format of the prime ministerial debates were criticised. They've "irritated one of the people who negotiated the format with the Conservatives and Labour" - Jonny Oates, the Lib Dem director of communications no less. He got the chance to voice his criticisms in an interview with Martha. The Conservatives response was then read out. Were they invited onto the programme? Did they choose just to have their response read out by Martha Kearney? Martha wasn't forthcoming about that, nor, as cj harnett from the Biased BBC blog (this blog's mother ship) spotted, was she forthcoming about guest Will Straw's relationship to a certain Jack Straw MP.
*
When Martha gathered her 'way-beyond-party-politics' panel today, she made sure to tell us that the token right-winger on the panel, actor Julian Fellowes, was a Conservative supporter. Mr Fellowes - and the party he supports - found himself under sustained attack from the other two guests, Justine Roberts of mumsnet and Tim Smit of the Eden Project. That Mr Smit is one of the government's 'social enterprise ambassadors' was another thing not mentioned by Martha Kearney.