Normally, I would not pay much attention to a streaming channel closing down as they are generally nothing special. However, I just found out that Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is closing down its UK version from July 6th.

TCM HD is one of the channels I receive as part of my Virgin Media TV bundle. It is the one I turn to when I want to watch a good old film rather than some modern junk. It has shown loads of old classics, quite a few of which I have enjoyed watching or rewatching. I have several still saved on my TiVO box for future reference/enjoyment.

I am actually going to miss not having this channel available. Although, according to the TCM website some of their film catalogue will be appearing on the Quest channel at some point. So I'll have to see if I have access to that one.

I still try hard to back up any movie I really liked by buying the DVD. I know that's not forever either, but it feels more permanent than being at the mercy of streaming channels who will remove your favorites or cut you off completely at a moment's notice.

The whole TCM thing is in some peril, as the working staff was just reduced to something like 20 people, down from 90, in deep cost-cutting measures, a result of last year's merger between Warner Brothers and Discovery.

In effort to save the thing, top-name directors Scorsese, Spielberg, and P.T. Anderson have stepped in as (unpaid) curators of the material in effort to keep the enterprise going, but it's very touch and go at this point.

https://tvline.com/news/tcm-ho...c-movies-1235004850/

I believe that TCM Movies is a Warner Bros, Discovery International channel. Discovery have recently begun to make changes to its programming, perhaps cutting costs after its enormous expenditure on Olympics coverage a few years ago. For me most of its output has been "Westerns" which does not appeal whatsoever. Another of their channels "Eurosport" always competed for audiences with the BBC with coverage of Wimbledon tennis, this year they don't appear to have any coverage. Does Discovery have financial problems I wonder?

regards

John

It seems that Chesspieceface's comment confirms my query whic I had not seen until after I posted.

quote:

Originally posted by Raven:
I still try hard to back up any movie I really liked by buying the DVD. I know that's not forever either, but it feels more permanent than being at the mercy of streaming channels who will remove your favorites or cut you off completely at a moment's notice.

I have a good collection of films on DVD and blu-ray that I keep adding to for much the same reason TCM was just nice because it has shown movies I have only ever seen once before and had forgotten about

I used to love TCM when it first started in the UK. They were showing a lots of comedies and musicals from the early part of the 20th century.
I stopped watching it much when they went with westerns and grim films from the 1970s and 1980s