When I took the job as director of the BBC’s coverage of London 2012, my cousin asked if anything about the job kept me awake at night. The truth is nothing — so far. I can see that Britain’s television screens going black at the start of the 100 metres final would be bad, since there isn’t much recovery time in 9.6 seconds. Fortunately, however, we’re not wholly dependent on live events; and the pleasure of recent weeks has been seeing previews of what will make the whole year feel special. The best example is the ‘Sceptred Isle’ soliloquy by Patrick Stewart from our new television production of Richard II, which captures the national spirit better than any number of positioning papers on the ‘Cultural Olympiad’.
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Our highest ratings are likely to be for the opening ceremony, which continues to preoccupy politicians as well as organisers. I heard Jeremy Hunt, the Culture Secretary, saying the other week that he wanted the ceremony to illustrate the way Britain stood alone against fascism in 1940.
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