Is there a way to force BBC iPlayer app to run in phone mode?

[sensory]

I've modified my build.prop to allow me to use the tablet UI on the Nexus 7 and I must say I prefer it. The only problem I've run in to is that BBC iPlayer, when opened, redirects me to the mobile site because their app isn't optmised for tablets. That's their excuse, not a conclusion I came to on my own.

My question: is there a way to trick the app into running phone mode and not tablet mode? I don't like running iPlayer in a browser because when I press the Home button to go do something else, iPlayer stops whatever I was listening to until I open the browser again.

Thanks all!