Note to Self

When driving to Heathrow at 4:30am, make sure you have your passport. You no longer live in America. Anytime you get on a plane it is going to be an international flight and your Illinois drivers license will not suffice. You will miss your business trip if you do not have your passport and be forced to return to Oxford, go to the office, and face the relentless ribbing of your colleauges. REMEMBER YOUR PASSPORT!

There. Hopefully that works for next time.

TV LicenCe

If you own a TV, you must pay the fee. Every household in Britain pays a TV License (spelled Licence, but the plural is apparently licensing with an s, which is probably why Americans changed the spelling – one of many).

The fee to the Government is £145.50 per annum per household and when I first arrived I thought this was just another way to tax citizens, but alas there is a method to the madness. It pays for the BBC. I suppose its another way of paying for the same thing… TV channels. At our house, we don’t pay for cable channels, so the only payment for “free view” is this £145.50 per year. If you’re over 75 years old, your licence is free. If you’re blind you may qualify for a 50% concession.

http://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/

What does your licence fee pay for?

TV Licensing is committed to making it quick and easy for you to pay for your TV Licence in the way that suits you. The fee you pay provides a wide range of TV, radio and online content, as well as developing new ways to deliver it to you. Click on the devices below to find out more.
All of this content – and the television channels, radio stations and online spaces where audiences can find it – is paid for by the licence fee, allowing BBC's UK services to remain free of advertisements and independent of shareholder and political interest.

This fee is serious business – the government pretty much has to collect from every household in the country. And as you can imagine, plenty of people try to get out of it. You still receive channels streaming through your flat screen, even if you’re not paying the fee. After your licence has been expired for 2 months, and you have not paid, you will receive a notice saying something along these lines (err...don’t ask how I know this):

“YOU ARE HERBY GIVEN OFFICIAL NOTICE: Your Property is now under investigation. Maximum fine: £1,000 plus legal costs.”
Visit: Enforcement officers may be authorized to investigate your case and a visit to your home may be scheduled. If you’re found to be watching TV illegally, you may be cautioned and interviewed in accordance with the Police and Criminal Act 1984.

Good thing we just paid our renewal.

Thanks BBC, you’re one of the only good things I see about British TV. Although I might not be judging fairly considering we don’t pay for 200+ channels or DVR at my house (I miss my TIVO!).