question:By . Sean Poulter . PUBLISHED: . 16:01 EST, 18 June 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 07:48 EST, 19 June 2013 . A call centre made famous by a BBC reality TV series has been fined £225,000 for harassing families with nuisance calls. The BBC has portrayed the company’s millionaire boss ‘Big Nev’ Wilshire as a lovable rogue, a consumer champion and even a hero. However, the sinister reality is that his staff, who are sometimes seen dancing their way through calls, wearing fancy dress and taking part in bizarre motivational games, are causing real distress. The BBC series ‘The Call Centre‘ has heavily promoted Mr Wilshire and his business, which is based in Swansea and operates under the name Save Britain Money Ltd. Scroll down to watch . Mr Wilshire's companies pestered people who had registered with an official watchdog to block marketing calls . Staff use various brand names, including ‘We Claim You Gain’, when cold calling homes to find people who might be able to make a claim for mis-sold payment protection insurance(PPI). They also promote government energy saving home improvement schemes, such as loft insulation, under a brand called Nationwide Energy Services. The idea is that any leads are then sold on to third party specialist firms for cash, so generating big profits for the company which has a turnover of more than £25million a year. The calls cause real annoyance to millions, while there is evidence that some elderly people feel bullied and harassed. Mr Wilshire’s companies went further and pestered people who had registered with an official watchdog to block marketing calls. We Claim You Gain (WCYG) has been fined £100,000, which is the first time a company has been given a penalty for nuisance calls related to PPI. The fine for Nationwide Energy Services(NES), whose name has been heard many times on the BBC programme, was a higher £125,000. The calls cause annoyance to millions, while there is evidence that some elderly people feel bullied . Mr Wilshire's companies pestered people who had registered with a watchdog to block marketing calls . Staff are sometimes seen dancing their way through calls and wearing fancy dress . The fines were handed down by the Information Commissioners Office(ICO) as part of a wider crackdown by a number of watchdogs on cold call rogues. ICO director of operations, Simon Entwisle, said: ‘The public have told us that they are fed up with the constant bombardment of nuisance calls. ‘While the activities of Nev and his call centre employees have provided entertainment for many, they hide a bigger problem within the cold calling industry. ‘People have the legal right not to receive marketing calls and these companies have paid the price for failing to respect people’s wishes.’ The ICO is calling on the Government to give it greater powers to crack down on the rogues responsible for calls and texts to landlines and mobile phones. ‘We’d like to see it made easier for us to issue penalties to companies who are breaking the rules,’ said Mr Entwisle. Millions have become so-fed up with nuisance marketing calls for these and other services that they have registered with the Telephone Preference Service(TPS), which should block them. However, Mr Wilshire and his staff failed to check targets before making calls. Some 2,700 complaints were made, which is likely to be only a fraction of the people who were wrongly called. The firm had a record turnover of £25 million last year and was named . the second best place to work in the UK on The Sunday Times list . The BBC Three series presents life . inside the calls centre as something of a comic soap opera. The . difficulties of staff, whether it is the inability to get a date, . psychological problems or the struggle to make it through a call without . being abused are presented as entertainment. At the same time ‘Big Nev’ is portrayed as an eccentric father figure who sweeps up waifs and strays, giving them a chance of a career. He has been turned into a TV celebrity and given star billing on The One Show and BBC Breakfast. Publicity material describes him as ‘a very hands on boss who makes it his business to know the ins and outs of the call centre workers’ professional and private lives.’ It adds: ‘Nev is a big fan of John Wayne, who was one of the good guys as he puts it.’ At the same time, Mr Wilshire, aged 53, has taken full advantage of the free publicity. The firm’s website boasts: ‘Nev may have once being Swansea’s best kept secret but the man with a glide in his stride and a song to sing is now a familiar face to TV viewers around the UK.’ The company claims its work helps struggling consumers save money. Its 700 staff telephone 15,000 people a week and another 500 in the field call another 10,000 homes. The firm had a record turnover of £25 million last year, while it was named the second best place to work in the UK on The Sunday Times list. 'Big Nev' is portrayed as an eccentric father figure who sweeps up waifs and strays, giving them a chance of a career . The free publicity offered by the BBC will help the firm, which has been named the 26th fastest growing company in the UK on The Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track 100, to win new customers. Which? executive director Richard Lloyd said: ‘Thousands of people have told us they are sick and tired of being bombarded with nuisance calls and texts, so it’s good to see the ICO doing more to punish companies who are breaking the rules. ‘Given the scale of this problem, it’s time for the Government and telecoms providers to step in too, with new laws and new technology to tackle this scourge on people’s everyday lives.’ Mr Wilshire was unusually publicity shy yesterday. The firm said: ‘Neither NES nor WCUG accept that issuing monetary penalty notices is the appropriate course of action. Both have made the necessary representations to the ICO and will be issuing a formal appeal shortly. ‘While this process is on-going it would be inappropriate for both companies to comment further. We remain committed to the best interests of our customers at all time.’ The BBC defended the series saying: ‘The Call Centre, like all BBC programmes, went through robust editorial processes and compliance and we are confident that the programme is a balanced and fair representation of life in that place of work.’

question:I recently had the privilege of leading a two-day workshop on Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD) at the San Francisco Institute of Mental Health. The event brought together a diverse group of mental health professionals, all united by a common goal: to deepen our understanding and improve our approach to treating C-PTSD. One of the most rewarding moments was when a participant, let's call her Sarah, shared her personal journey of recovery. Her story was a powerful reminder of the resilience of the human spirit and the importance of empathy and support in the therapeutic process. It was a moving experience for everyone involved and underscored the impact that peer support can have. We explored a range of therapeutic techniques, including trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). The feedback from the participants was overwhelmingly positive, and it was heartening to see the enthusiasm and commitment to applying these methods in their own practices. I'm grateful to everyone who participated and contributed to such a meaningful event. If you have any experiences with C-PTSD or mental health workshops, I'd love to hear your thoughts and insights. Let's continue to support and learn from each other. 🌟 #MentalHealthAwareness #PTSD #CPTSD #Therapy #ProfessionalDevelopment

question:How accurate is handwriting recognition software.

question:Why is cursive handwriting harder for software to recognize than print handwriting.