Anne Robinson, who presented the show from 1986-1997, referred to the programme in her 2001 autobiography "Memoirs of an Unfit Mother":
"For nearly thirty years men - Robert Robinson and Kenneth Robinson before Barry Took - had presented Points of View and there was no provision for a woman doing the job. No dressing room had been arranged, there was no discussion about wardrobe, no scope for payment for clothes. No credit for writing the show. Considering Points of View was screened immediately before and after major programs (sic) into which millions were sunk in lighting, in costume, in fees to artists, it was a poor deal. It took half a day to script it, and another half-day to record it. The pay was around £300 per show. Who cared? I would have paid for the exposure. I was on my way."
"For nearly thirty years men - Robert Robinson and Kenneth Robinson before Barry Took - had presented Points of View and there was no provision for a woman doing the job. No dressing room had been arranged, there was no discussion about wardrobe, no scope for payment for clothes. No credit for writing the show. Considering Points of View was screened immediately before and after major programs (sic) into which millions were sunk in lighting, in costume, in fees to artists, it was a poor deal. It took half a day to script it, and another half-day to record it. The pay was around £300 per show. Who cared? I would have paid for the exposure. I was on my way."
Terry Wogan, presenter of the show from 1999-2007, commented on Points Of View in his 2006 autobiography "Mustn't Grumble":
"[...] always a joy to do, but shunted around the Sunday evening schedules like the stopgap they obviously think it is. If you can find it, even the duration varies - and they don't show it during the peak viewing months of autumn and winter. Obviously they're not really interested in viewers' opinions, otherwise the programme would be given the status and time it deserves."
"[...] always a joy to do, but shunted around the Sunday evening schedules like the stopgap they obviously think it is. If you can find it, even the duration varies - and they don't show it during the peak viewing months of autumn and winter. Obviously they're not really interested in viewers' opinions, otherwise the programme would be given the status and time it deserves."
Jeremy Vine, who guest-presented some episodes in 2007 and was the regular presenter from 2008-2018, briefly referenced Points of View in his autobiography.
In 2012's "It's All News To Me", published when Jeremy was still the presenter of the series, he noted: "I took over Points of View from Sir Terry [Wogan] and was staggered when the fiftieth anniversary programme forced me to look at the lineage: Robinson, Took, Robinson, Wogan, Vine."
In 2012's "It's All News To Me", published when Jeremy was still the presenter of the series, he noted: "I took over Points of View from Sir Terry [Wogan] and was staggered when the fiftieth anniversary programme forced me to look at the lineage: Robinson, Took, Robinson, Wogan, Vine."
Barry Took, who presented over 280 episodes of the series between 1979-1986, published a book of letters sent to the show soon into his run.
1981's "Points of View" saw Took give insight into the behind-the-scenes workings of the programme, including the number of letters received (an average of 40 per week when the show was revived in 1979; an average of 1000 when the book was published) and his active role in events.
Of his own style, Took noted: "I am, from time to time, accused of flippancy and a general lack of seriousness. Well, to be honest, I'm not a terribly serious person and although I have many opinions which I hold strongly, my function in Points Of View is not to express what I feel but to act in a way as a bridge between viewer and BBC, and indeed viewer and viewer. If the tone of the letters in any one week is cheerful rather than glum, that will be the mood of that week's programme."
1981's "Points of View" saw Took give insight into the behind-the-scenes workings of the programme, including the number of letters received (an average of 40 per week when the show was revived in 1979; an average of 1000 when the book was published) and his active role in events.
Of his own style, Took noted: "I am, from time to time, accused of flippancy and a general lack of seriousness. Well, to be honest, I'm not a terribly serious person and although I have many opinions which I hold strongly, my function in Points Of View is not to express what I feel but to act in a way as a bridge between viewer and BBC, and indeed viewer and viewer. If the tone of the letters in any one week is cheerful rather than glum, that will be the mood of that week's programme."
Barry Took referenced leaving the series in his 1994 autobiography "Mr Point of View", with some of his remarks including:
"One of the things which caused me to leave Points of View was the unchanging nature of the letters. You have to be very angry or obsessed to write to the BBC, and year after year the mail was largely along the lines of: 'The BBC is a load o' crap!' or 'What a load of despicable rubbish!' or '95% of all TV programmes are either old rubbish or neo rubbish.' Whatever that is. The abuse was often personal."
[Quote transcribed from Barry Took's audiobook reading of his autobiography, so some punctuation may differ to the printed version.]
"One of the things which caused me to leave Points of View was the unchanging nature of the letters. You have to be very angry or obsessed to write to the BBC, and year after year the mail was largely along the lines of: 'The BBC is a load o' crap!' or 'What a load of despicable rubbish!' or '95% of all TV programmes are either old rubbish or neo rubbish.' Whatever that is. The abuse was often personal."
[Quote transcribed from Barry Took's audiobook reading of his autobiography, so some punctuation may differ to the printed version.]