BBC News 24

Chris Hollins did a good "one" the other week, it was his first time so he made a thing of it in a joking sort of way, ensuring he'd folded the chair over properly and put it under the desk.

When he'd got over to the screen he finished with something like "that was exciting wasn't it". It livened up the afternoon!

What kind of special programming could News 24 come up with to rival Sky News - renaming 12-3pm bulletins, N24 PM or something like that? Extending News 24 Tonight, a special political discussion show with Big Al?

None. For one thing News 24 is supposed to be distinctive so copying Sky would be a mistake. I think News 24 Tonight is a wrong move - they should have implemented the obvious improvements during this hour across the schedule.

Rolling news should be rolling news. No gimmicks.

Of the two TOTHs I have seen in the last two days on BBC News 24, both have had the vamp re-started half way through the headlines. They have re-started it for the "also in this hour" stories just before the titles. I think it sounds horrible. It's worked by just playing it once for almost two years, so why change it now? I think it sounds clumsy.

True, it is nice to have a unique distinctivness between news channels, otherwise there is no point in having more than one.

And there is no point in renaming programmes just to combat Sky News especially if the content remains the same.

I'd generally agree with you, but I wouldn't be at all surprised to see a few tweaks to the presentation on Monday. Even if it's as subtle as increasing the time spent presenting away from the desk (i.e right hand set or newsroom). Now they've sorted out the projection quality on the two main screens (about a year late) they can hopefully move onto the more innovative things on their "to do" list.

Doubt it. As you mentioned it took auntie over a year to fix the projection screens.....Unless they've been planning it....

The fact that News 24 use some stand up presenting is an influence from Sky News if they were to do increasingly and possibly move into their newsroom, then they would only be mimicking Sky News further.

When they're walking across to the right hand area, the director does sometimes use the railcam on the roof to get the reverse angle shot as they move across the studio. Looks nice, especially if the railcam is in motion at the same time.

Strange thing on News 24 just now. On the Tory leadership election they were showing a small screen of Colour bars from the room. The colour bars then switched to black screen 10 secs before the result switched in.

I wonder why they showed us the colour bars and who was providing the feed that it was done this way.

Did you have the sound turned down? Jon Sopel explained, each time, exactly why they were showing the bars and what they signified. He couldn't have made it much clearer.

I did have the sound turned down a lot of the time (that old trouble of work interupting my telly watching on my PC).

However, you'd normally assume that any output of any kind that might be aired would be less internally looking than that e.g with a proper caption screen rather than just colour bars with text. That's what I'm getting at. It's not at all usual for us viewers to see the internal workings of newsfeeds.