Why should we pay for the socialist bias rubbish spouted by the BBC? Lady McAlpine asks

By the time I was born in 1944, the BBC was not only deemed to be all of the above but had proved to be an amazing tool in the fight against the Nazis broadcasting information to our allies and misinformation to the Germans. It was a source of great national pride.

If you heard it on the radio, it must be true. It kept up spirits at home with programmes written to amuse those of the "troops" who could access them, and sent messages and favourite songs from lonely wives and girlfriends to the men they were missing via "Forces Favourites"

We children gathered around the radio every day after "tea" for Children's Hour and our imaginations were nurtured as we each painted mind-pictures of the characters in the stories read by "Uncle Mac" and others. I recall arguing fiercely with fellow six-yr olds about what Mowgli looked like, what colour hair "Jennings" had.. etc.

Friends who lived abroad knew that if they tuned in to the World Service or as some still called it: the Empire Service or the Overseas Service, they would hear the plain unvarnished truth about world affairs.

They could go about their business wherever they were in the world secure in the knowledge that if there was any trouble, bellicose or economic, the BBC would give them the facts before the rest of the world had noticed.

By the time I was married and listening to Today early in the morning, after a gentle dose of Farming Today, I found myself, or my husband, shouting at the radio far too frequently: "Let him ANSWER!".. The rot had begun. I believe it did begin with Today.

Arrogant presenters who asked questions of elected Government ministers only to give themselves the opportunity to air THEIR views. We kept trying to listen but gave up as we began every day angry. Fortunately a new-born is a great distraction.

Over the years I have tried again to listen to Today.. only to switch off before I threw the radio across the room. I gave up on BBC TV news very early on for the same reason. Now, I last watched the BBC the day of King Charles' Coronation... before that it was his mother's funeral.

As for the other supposedly informative programmes: it becomes ever more evident that you cannot land a job as an interviewer if you don't conform to the socialist bias that has been proved to have existed far longer than most of us realised.

If you want to get the complete unvarnished truth out to the greatest number of the British Public, you might assume that the "National Broadcaster" was the logical place to go. If you assumed that now, you would just have flown in from Mars.

We are asked to pay a License fee to listen to the totally biased rubbish that is now spouted by the BBC.. even if we only watch or listen to any programme other than the BBC. I receive regular threatening letters from a licensing authority that of course assumes that we are all illicitly listening to or watching our once-dependable national broadcasting service. Why?