News Broadcasting
BBC viewers sink Murdoch’s ‘Titanic’
LONDON: It may be the all-time box office champion of the UK, US and the world. It may have won 11 Academy Awards. But all that has not saved Fox’s Titanic from being voted the UK’s worst film ever by viewers of BBC One’s Film 2003 with Jonathan Ross.
Over 2,000 different movies were nominated by tens of thousands of viewers during the six week poll. Everything from Absolute Beginners to Zulu, from famously bad films such as Plan 9 from Outer Space to many generally acknowledged as classics such as Citizen Kane and Lawrence of Arabia received nominations..
Titanic emerged as a clear winner. “And may I commend the nation on its choice” Ross added. .On BBC’s site one remark from a vengeful viewer ran like this. “My father fell asleep after 20 minutes. He was lucky. It was only his snoring that kept me awake”
The other films in the top ten worst list included Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut which mystified the voters and not surprisingly John Travolta’s egotistical failure Battlefield Earth. The indie box office horror hit film The Blair Witch Project and Steven Spielberg’s A.I. were also cited as was Michael Bay’s disastrously jingoistic Pearl Harbour.
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to host Kolkata Town Hall on Hooghly River
‘Bhalobasa Bengal Inspiring Bharat’ event on April 20 brings cultural icons, trailblazing women and leaders aboard a cruise to celebrate Bengal’s enduring influence.
MUMBAI: Bengal is about to make fresh waves on the Hooghly and this time the current is pure conversation. CNN-News18 is taking its iconic Town Hall format to the waters of the iconic Hooghly River on 20 April 2026 with a special edition titled ‘Bhalobasa Bengal – Inspiring Bharat’. The floating event will celebrate the state’s rich cultural legacy and how its ideas, creativity and spirit continue to shape the rest of the country.
The unique riverside setting draws on Bengal’s history as a cradle of reform, art and intellectual thought. The speaker line-up mirrors that diversity: cultural heavyweights Mithun Chakraborty and Sreenanda Shankar will share the stage with trailblazing “Devis” such as Tanya Sanyal (India’s first woman firefighter in aviation), Ipsita Chakraborty (Kolkata’s first woman bartender) and Reshma Nilofer Visalakshi (Nari Shakti awardee and marine pilot). Music will flow through the celebrated pianist-vocalist duo Sourendro and Soumyojit, while public life and governance will be represented by Smriti Irani, Leander Paes, Saira Shah Halim, Keya Ghosh, Rekha Patra, Roopa Ganguly and Babul Supriyo.
CNN-News18, editorial affairs director, Rahul Shivshankar, said the event honours voices that carry Bengal’s legacy forward. Smriti Mehra, CEO – English & Business News, Network18, added that Bengal’s stories resonate far beyond its borders, especially as the state heads into polls.
From the first woman to battle flames in the skies to legendary actors who shaped Indian cinema, the gathering promises a rich mix of inspiration, courage and candid dialogue. In a city where culture has always flowed as freely as the river itself, CNN-News18 is turning the Hooghly into a floating forum for ideas that matter.
Tune in on 20 April on CNN-News18, CTV and YouTube to catch Bengal’s heartbeat in full flow.
