CiTV & Ministry of Mayhem thread

I've noticed for the las couple of days CITV have been broadcasting 4:3 cropped to near 16:9 . On digital the black bars down the sides are barely visible, there is loads of picture missing off the top, even analogue viewers are missing large chunks of picture off the side (text which is meant to be at the edge of the 4:3 frame is dissapearing off the edge for analogue viewers). I was waching Angry Beavers and it lead to an apalling mess all round- even the kids must have know picture was mising. The widescreen/4:3 situation (not just with CITV) with the "everything must be widescreen" brigade is starting to reach incredibly pathetic proportions now, the sooner something is done about it, and original aspect ratios are retained wehenever possible, the better- especially with archive footage-based documentries and full programmes (a big message to CBBC & CITV who have been ruining shows for ages now, though at least CBBC had 14:9 and stuck to it, CITV's have been slowly cropping more and more. Sadly being a children's slot, they can get away with it as children either don't know or don't complain- adults do (not like they listen when we do- on any subject).).

I noticed this a lot today, especially when I was messing about with sky and set it to 4:3, it was as though it had zoomed in to the middle of the picture.

Is there any where we can complain to, like a Carlton/Central West email address, as opposed to using studio@citv.co.uk

Andy's been in a wierd mood this afternoon, he started the afternoon by shouting, and mucking up and laughing to someone off camera, whilst saying 'Laura come back quick'.

I don't get what's happened with Spongebobbing, though quite good how they did it, how Swag was supposed to have forgotten to book the pool and so he went off and set up a quick Bag the Swag!

I wonder whether they'll be back in the garden this summer. I wonder whether we'll get shows in the morning instead of Trisha & This Morning or rubbish films!

Well, I used dutyoffice@itv.com though I'm not bothering as it's not really going to make much of a difference unless they get several hundred comaplints, and even then I doubt they take much notice. The TV companies don't seem to be that bothered what people think, defiantly not on subjects like this. If they did, BBC Four would never crop, as every time the subject arises on their message boards (which it does often), pretty much everyone speaks out against it (except one very adamant person who's insistent cropping is the best way (though he's always pounced upon by everyone), one wonders if he works for the BBC) and the mods say they've passed our comments on to the people who care- though from lack of response or action, it's obvious they don't.

The again if they have moved to London or Manchester then there might be no CiTV Garden

Well if they moved to Manchester they have the access of Coronation Street and the pretty big Granada Car Park. If they moved to London they also have a bit of wasteland by the Thames. If they moved to Leeds, there's a bit of grass at the front of Kirkstall Road studios.

Do CiTV ever use the garden?

When/if are they supposed to be moving? When is Nottingham supposed to be closing?

CiTV used the garden throughout last summer.
They used it everyday when the weather was dry. They had all beach stuff out by the pond and had special summer idents.
I think it was the first year that it had been used since 1998 (when the wall was painted with CiTV characters and the logo, just like the studio of then, possibly used briefly in 1999, but never whole weeks like they did last summer.

The only other summer that they were out and about live was back in 2001 for the first CiTV White Knuckle tour every friday in a different theme park between shows.

With 2002's white knuckle tour being every sunday, recorded into a 25
minute programme and played out every tuesday presented by Stephen, Michael (with his braids, before properly joining the CiTV team), and a different CiTV presenter each week.

Quite a good show, got viewers to come down and see CiTV, and be part of it, and became another show made for (infact, by) CiTV.

On the Ministry of Mayhem website(here), in the lounge area on the deluxe version they've got the lyrics to the theme tune, it says that want u to get practising so that they can hear voices of angels. I presume they want ppl to sing it down the phone, plus it includes the first verse that they have recently edited out of the theme tune.

Back to CiTV this afternoon, Laura is great. She's constantly happy, doesn't care what goes on and adlibs whenever she wants, she also seems to have started to leak that side out of Andy too. It's a shame that they don't have any afternoons like Fridays before christmas when Michael & Leah had ages to talk, adlib and try things out.

The Yuk Show started today, it was set out a bit like fingertips meets how 2. And it was quite interesting. If only we could see more shows, rather than one a week, replaced by another.

I didn't catch it! I've only really been watching aussie soaps and new Lizzie McGuire all week.

I'll make sure I check out more Laura. From what I've seen she's great so far.

She is great, wish I was in Andy's shoes working with her everyday though!

LOL! Yeah!

I think with Gail and Andy it looked wrong at Gails age. If CiTV did a Little CiTV she'd be ideal to present it.

You need presenters to be under 30's for kids.

I don't care their age, as long as they make good programmes and are entertaining.

I'd much rather watch Fred Dinage on How 2, than watch a show presented by last years Tim Dixon.