Prince Philip: BBC sets up page for complaints about ‘too much TV coverage’ of duke's death

The BBC has set up a dedicated page allowing people to complain about “too much TV coverage” of the death of the Duke of Edinburgh.

The broadcaster suspended its Friday schedule across both BBC One and BBC Two to run a series of mirrored special programmes about the duke, who died at Windsor Castle aged 99.

BBC Four was suspended while BBC Radio 4 and BBC Radio 5 Live also aired special programming reflecting his life.

ITV also made schedule changes following the news, leading up to an extended News at Ten at 10pm.

The BBC later established a dedicated form on its website after receiving complaints about its coverage.

It read: “We’re receiving complaints about too much TV coverage of the death of HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Please enter your email address below to register a complaint about this – we’ll then send you the BBC’s response as soon as it is available.”

The broadcaster declined to comment further.

Earlier it had said in a statement: “With the sad news that HRH Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, has died, there is now special coverage across all BBC networks to mark his life of extraordinary public service and planned scheduling has been suspended.”

Former BBC presenter Simon McCoy, who recently left to join GB News, questioned the decision to duplicate the schedule across channels.

He wrote on Twitter: “BBC1 and BBC2 showing the same thing. And presumably the News Channel too. Why? I know this is a huge event. But surely the public deserve a choice of programming?”

Channel 4, meanwhile, on Friday aired an obituary programme at 4pm and featured an extended 90-minute news broadcast at 7pm before returning to its peak time schedule for the final of reality show The Circle.

The BBC is also running an adjusted schedule on Saturday, with BBC One featuring a BBC News special at 10am, displacing shows including Saturday Kitchen Live and Football Focus to BBC Two.

How do I submit a complaint?

To submit a complaint about the coverage of Prince Philip on the BBC, you can visit the contact the BBC page.

Within the page, complainants can enter their email address. They will then be sent the BBC’s response as soon as it is available.