The Newsroom

SW England news thread

General discussion of Westcountry News/Spotlight (February 2006)

This site closed in March 2021 and is now a read-only archive
JV
James Vertigan Founding member
And Dean Lydiate's now being interviewed on Radio Devon!

I don't know if the programme will be available later on listen again though.
ST
Stuart
James Vertigan posted:
Spotlight seem to have a new look to their morning bulletins... they've got a different backdrop to the normal studio.

I noticed that too, possibly from last week. A quick flick through the other regions at 6:28 this morning showed that it's just a South West feature, as all the others retained their usual backgrounds.

The desk is no longer shown, so perhaps they are not using the main studio in the morning. Perhaps it is cheaper to staff with a single camera shot against a green screen.
JV
James Vertigan Founding member
StuartPlymouth posted:
James Vertigan posted:
Spotlight seem to have a new look to their morning bulletins... they've got a different backdrop to the normal studio.

I noticed that too, possibly from last week. A quick flick through the other regions at 6:28 this morning showed that it's just a South West feature, as all the others retained their usual backgrounds.

The desk is no longer shown, so perhaps they are not using the main studio in the morning. Perhaps it is cheaper to staff with a single camera shot against a green screen.


Probably the same studio used for the 8pm updates?
ST
Stuart
James Vertigan posted:
Probably the same studio used for the 8pm updates?

Perhaps it is indeed the same set-up as they use for the 8pm update on BBC One; but I don't think there is another TV studio at Seymour Road. However I seem to recall seeing a CSO-only area in the studio on one of the "behind the scenes" videos on BBCi.

Even if the desk in the studio is used for Breakfast, I'm sure it's easier to have a pre-set background keyed for the CSO graphic and a single-camera shot rather than the previous 2 cameras and the live feed from Plymouth Sound.

I always used to think it looked more informal when Victoria Graham did the Breakfast Bulletins from the sofa (although that was CSO as it was before they had the back-projection screen installed for the Politics Show).
CI
cityprod
StuartPlymouth posted:
James Vertigan posted:
Probably the same studio used for the 8pm updates?

Perhaps it is indeed the same set-up as they use for the 8pm update on BBC One; but I don't think there is another TV studio at Seymour Road. However I seem to recall seeing a CSO-only area in the studio on one of the "behind the scenes" videos on BBCi.

Even if the desk in the studio is used for Breakfast, I'm sure it's easier to have a pre-set background keyed for the CSO graphic and a single-camera shot rather than the previous 2 cameras and the live feed from Plymouth Sound.

I always used to think it looked more informal when Victoria Graham did the Breakfast Bulletins from the sofa (although that was CSO as it was before they had the back-projection screen installed for the Politics Show).


There certainly used to be another studio at Seymour Road. It was a little self-op studio that was used for all the short bulletins back in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, before the main studio became the one where all the bulletins were done from. Famously, Donald Heighway presented a "Breakfast Spotlight" bulletin from there on BBC1 SW on the morning of the hurricane, just before we joined Nicholas Witchell in the CBBC Broom Cupboard! I remember that very clearly, and I think TV Ark has the clip too.

If I remember correctly, it was converted into either an office or a conference room. Although with the technology as cheap and as portable as it is nowadays, there is no reason at all, why it or another suitable location couldn't have been converted into a small CSO studio.

Westcountry has a CSO studio along with their main studio at Langage. Nowadays it's only used for the Plymouth sub-regional updates, but it used to be used for all short Westcountry News bulletins, and the Plymouth updates.
ST
Stuart
cityprod posted:
There certainly used to be another studio at Seymour Road. It was a little self-op studio that was used for all the short bulletins back in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, before the main studio became the one where all the bulletins were done from.

If I remember correctly, it was converted into either an office or a conference room. Although with the technology as cheap and as portable as it is nowadays, there is no reason at all, why it or another suitable location couldn't have been converted into a small CSO studio.

Perhaps they have resurrected it now. As a money-saving-method it seems quite sensible in view of the small difference it makes on-screen.
cityprod posted:
Westcountry has a CSO studio along with their main studio at Langage. Nowadays it's only used for the Plymouth sub-regional updates, but it used to be used for all short Westcountry News bulletins, and the Plymouth updates.

I thought the Westcountry(South) sub-regional opts were recorded from the main studio at Langage? Although, I have to admit, I don't tend to watch regional news from ITV1 these days.
JV
James Vertigan Founding member
How about the studio in this clip at 01:37? Was that a CSO set?
SP
spotlightsouthwest
StuartPlymouth posted:
James Vertigan posted:
Probably the same studio used for the 8pm updates?


I always used to think it looked more informal when Victoria Graham did the Breakfast Bulletins from the sofa (although that was CSO as it was before they had the back-projection screen installed for the Politics Show).


That started in 2004, and at that stage I think they already had the back-projection screen with their studio refresh (ie: painting it grey)?
ST
Stuart
James Vertigan posted:
How about the studio in this clip at 01:37? Was that a CSO set?

Yes, but that is the main desk area they still use now, which still has a CSO keyed background:
http://www.rp-network.com/tvforum/uploads/sl.gif

spotlightsouthwest posted:
StuartPlymouth posted:
James Vertigan posted:
Probably the same studio used for the 8pm updates?


I always used to think it looked more informal when Victoria Graham did the Breakfast Bulletins from the sofa (although that was CSO as it was before they had the back-projection screen installed for the Politics Show).


That started in 2004, and at that stage I think they already had the back-projection screen with their studio refresh (ie: painting it grey)?

I'm sure the back-projection screen used in the "soft" area has not been there that long.

37 days later

GH
G Honeybun
Liz Hannam (head of news at ITV West) is now also head of news at ITV Westcountry.

Further proof (if any was needed!) that the Plymouth studios will close soon and the two regions will merge.
KE
kernow
Today, they introduced new Flybe sponsorship stings for Westcountry weather.

The voiceover now says: "...sponsors of Westcountry Weather" (before it was "ITV Westcountry Weather"), which is good news, although the text on the screen says "ITV West Country" weather.

Why can't they spell Westcountry correctly on the weather sponsorships? There's been several sponsorships since the Carlton rebrand in 1999 which have spelt it as "West Country" (the only exceptions I can think of are Wessex Trains & South West England, which did spell it correctly).
DA
Dave Founding member
kernow posted:


Why can't they spell Westcountry correctly on the weather sponsorships? There's been several sponsorships since the Carlton rebrand in 1999 which have spelt it as "West Country" (the only exceptions I can think of are Wessex Trains & South West England, which did spell it correctly).


Because we are in the West Country. Westcountry was a brand started by an ITV franchise that took over from TSW.

Newer posts