I am not defending the BBC - nor do I work for them - but more of a nag at those 'further up the information chain.' I went to a large airbase to photograph an exercise last year, and the last stop on the tour was a long line of aircraft.
"Can we go and look around them," we asked, hoping to photograph the aircraft from different angles, "No,"we were told, we could only photograph them from a distance and that there was no need to look around them because "they are all the same, aren't they?" - and that was from a media officer...
Usually most visits are all spot on, but was quite surprised at what the chap said, fortunately it was all sorted out, after much pleading...