BBC News - one presenter better?

I think hes Just fliped the current shot round and added the Caption and Screen.
Copy the image to paint and flip it.

(Edited by rob at 5:10 pm on June 23, 2001)

Yes, it is a mirror image - Huw doesn't sit on that side of the desk!

Thanks for that. I read somewhere recently though that the delay between the end of the Six o'clock news and UK Today is due to the fact that the cameras in Studio N6 are used for UK. Whether or not this is true, I am not sure though if it were so, this may affect any possibility of the camera moves that were suggested as the camera would surely need to be on a more permanent fixture or its own running track?

It's not just the camera that has to be moved around. The whole production team changes - it's a different director that does UK Today to the 6. That's the reason for the promo. Also presentation like having a promo there as it's a big audience that they can plug stuff to! Some regions are naughty and opt out early - I know we used to do it in Plymouth when we had a busy programme and wanted a few more seconds!

You are correct about the cameras doing both the National News and UK Today. In fact the camera that provides the shot of the National Newsreader with the newsroom backing (without the inset) spins round to a green-screen CSO position where the UK Today presenter sits. UK Today need the trail at the end of the One and Six to reset cameras. The 1525 and the 2225 are recorded, as a trail is not available here, amongst other reasons.

The N6 studio is actually pretty small - and the 5 cameras are currently arranged such that none of them could crab/track around each other. Also there are no studio camera operators, so a crane would add to the staffing costs! All 5 studio cameras on pedestals (plus the 7th camera in the newscentre used for breaking news) are remotely controlled by a single operator who also does lighting. The 6th camera is slung from the ceiling and not remotely controllable (apart from exposure)

My Goodness, I never would have thought it of the BBC. Were they always operated by one person or was it another Dyke 'Cut'? The camera moves suggested as well as the crane movement seem absolutely out of the question given the current situation. The 7th camera on the ceiling is obviously the one which provides the fade in view at the beginning and the fade out view at the end. Is there no way they could incorporate a crane movement accompanied by the BBC News claps - say before the promo or at the beginning and end?

Having been in N6 it is indeed much smaller than it looks. When I stood up I was almost out of the top of the studo.

Is the fact that UK Today uses the same studio the reason why there are no regional bulletins in the morning as there were a few years ago?

What ever happened to Martyn Lewis, Edward Stourton and Diana Madill??

Martin Lewis resigned after being offered a job at BBC World. He's done a few things on ITV including the special Christmas and Easter series on the news as it would have been.

Ed Stourton is now on BBC Radio 4 and does Today sometimes I think, he also presents Correspondent on Sundays on BBC Two.

Diana Madill presents Westminster Live afternoons on BBC Two. Or at least she would be doing if she hadn't just gone on maternity leave (she left before the election!)

[quote="noggin"]

Is it true that in News24 the cameras are all controlled by the director who also does the vision mixing. Sounds like a busy job

[quote="marcjs"][quote="noggin"]
Yes they do vision mix, control the cameras, plus a few other things as well including the animating text boxes, talk to the presenters etc etc.
As I'm sure ScottC will explain in more detail!

Yes indeed... At News 24 the gallery is staffed by a single journalist, and three Tech Directors during the day (just two at night)

The Tech Dir Vision - TDV - operates the cameras using Radamec remote control, the automatic Server and GFX replay system (Columbus), the manual caption system (BigTed), the vision mixer and DVE (though Columbus also partially controls this to help... or hinder...) as well as other various graphics bits and bobs. The TDV also talks to the presenters, floor manager, autocue operator and on-line AVID suites, to keep the whole show on-air. They also try to keep an eye on timing - along with the output editor...

(This job is performed by many more people in a conventional gallery... BBC One News has a separate director, separate vision mixer, separate lighting/camera person, as well as two or three people playing in VTs from the TX area, and one or two people operating static and moving graphics replay equipment. The director still generates the name captions though, and there is a little bit more variety in the output...)

The Tech Dir Sound - TDS - balances the sound output from microphones, server ports, VTRs, Outside sources, MiniDiscs etc, as well as playing in the music beds from Minidisc.

The Tech Dir Co-ord/Comms - TDC - calls up and lines up all outside sources, assists the output editor in ensuring instructions for the automation system which have been entered into the newsroom computer ( ENPS) are correct, and also assists the TDV with cameras and lighting should this be necessary.

Overnight there are fewer Outside sources required, so the TDS assumes the TDC role as well.