BBC4: a love letter

My darling BBC4,

I adore you. You know that, don't you? But why? Why, after years of regarding you with at best mild curiosity and slight confusion, have you come to be an indispensable part of my evenings and weekends?

I'll tell you: it's because of your incredible output. You have so many amazing, perfectly formed shows that just wouldn't get a look in anywhere else. That you give them their chance makes you a very special channel indeed.

Take the sublime Borgen for example. What other channel would show this exquisitely shot Danish political drama with writing and acting so good it makes The West Wing look like the work of five year olds? No one. But thanks to you I can watch two episodes every week. And I always do, because Borgen is the best thing on TV at the moment. By far.

And who else would've taken the time and effort that you did to make your excellent The Story of Musicals? A fabulous three part look at the rise of the British musical since the 1950s, I'm devastated that this had to end (but excited that you're filling its vacant slot with a nature documentary).

Then there's my beloved Only Connect. The best quiz show around by several country miles, no doubt your more mainstream BBC cousins thought it too nerdy and obscure. But you realised that it was this nerdiness and obscurity that made it such a brilliant show.

I could go on and on - I've not even touched upon your amazing range of documentaries on subjects as varied as the process of decay and the history and relevance of illuminated manuscripts (both of which were excellent, by the way). But I won't.

I just want you to know how much I love you.

Please, don't ever change.

Billi xoxo