The new NEW Central West and BBC Midlands thread

Just seemed a lot more lively than their usual selves, Bob especially. Might be the night of their Christmas Party, or maybe something brewing behind the scenes. Who can tell.

Wesley's done the late shift all week this week, read into that all you want.

Bob has never really had any chemistry wih Sameena even though they have been together nearly a decade now.

Ahhh Wesley... maybe one day we shall see him return as a main anchor. 30 years in January since the launch of Central South. I wonder if it will be celebrated on twitter.

I was at a dinner earlier in the year and Bob was seated at a table nearby. He got up to answer a call on his mobile then came back into the room as I was going out. I smiled and acknowledged him...he ignored me.

Conversely, I was at a similar event a few years previously and Peter Tomlinson was there as a former High Sheriff of the West Midlands. He had just finished talking to a rather high profile person, whom I was with, and I started talking about Tiswas (rather than formal stuff) and he was absolutely delighted by the recognition... the other person with us was absolutely baffled by the conversation until I explained to her who he was and what he had done for millions of kids in the 70s.

My parents met him at a local tennis event a few years ago, and said he was lovely, friendly and chatty. Maybe he’d received some bad news on the phone when you saw him, or maybe he’d not noticed you. We all have our off-days, even regional celebrities.

Superb to see Rajiv Popat back presenting the main edition this week. It has certainly been a good few years since that occurred. I wonder why they never let Wesley present the main edition? Maybe unfair to favour a freelancer.

Wesley used to sometimes fill in on the main edition, circa 2008 - I distinctly remember one edition he presented (ISTR alongside Sarah-Jane Mee?) where they were discussing how to cook sprouts. Must have been a slow news day...

Have seen on the promo video on ITV Central's Facebook page that Des is stood in front of a Weather map which goes down South to the old Central South region incorporating Oxford and goes as far East to take in some of Anglia East incorporating Cambridge.

For some reason online it’s not uncommon from ITV, usually Granada to post a weather map for all Granada, Yorkshire, Tyne Tees and Border regions as one.

Which, after seeing this and watching a clip on YouTube, reminds me. What was "The Weather Department"? Was it just a grand name for Central's weather team? I know they also did forecasts for GMTV, was there anyone else?

'The Weather Department' was technically an indie production company set up to produce weather forecasts.
IIRC they were based in Vittoria Street in Birminghams Jewellery Quarter district, and (could just be a co-incidence) the same building as Mentorn Midlands.

Hazy recollection that The Weather Channel from that there America, had some relationship with them.

Sunday Politics East Midlands was on the HD channel today. Quite impressed with the SD upscaling from Nottingham in comparison to Birmingham.

Might be because Nottingham edit and export upscaled HD, whereas Birmingham record using SD infrastructure and output to SD?

The fact that here, in 2018 nearly 2019 there are English Regions still surviving on 2001/2 technology says it all. Look at the rate of change in the 18 years previous to 2001/2 - yes technology moved on faster but I don't believe that the English Regions would be left to rot the way some of them have.

No future proofing and bad choices on what kit to buy have lead to this (don't know if Nottingham use the god awful Thomson studio cameras Brum use).