Today I started watching my 'The New Statesman' DVD, and saw that the cue dots were present in the top right leading up to the break. (Excellently, they left the break captions in, rather than editing them out.)
I always presumed that the cue dots were added by tx as it was being transmitted, rather than being present on the master tape. Is this how things were usually done?
Today I started watching my 'The New Statesman' DVD, and saw that the cue dots were present in the top right leading up to the break. (Excellently, they left the break captions in, rather than editing them out.)
I always presumed that the cue dots were added by tx as it was being transmitted, rather than being present on the master tape. Is this how things were usually done?
It's strange really how the master tapes themselves have the cue dots, you would think these were added by transmission live and therefore not be on the master tapes, but all ITV programmes seem to have cue dots on them, which suggusted there were all added onto the original tape rather then added by transmission.
I once asked something like this when I saw a cue-dot on Channel 4 News and they're still around but rarely seen. That cue-dot shown on Wikipedia belongs to a friend of nodnirG kraM.
Would they not also be a cue to transmission that the programme is coming out and they need to start the ads?
Exactly, with ITV (and sometimes on the BBC) they were/are a cue by the programme to transmission as an indication that the part/programme was about to end. There's no point in transmission cueing themselves
The BBC used them the other way round, transmission (presentation) used them to cue programmes and regional opts
The BBC used them the other way round, transmission (presentation) used them to cue programmes and regional opts
Yes, I think I've seen an instance on this from about a decade back before Snooker coverage. For a while I was only aware of their use on the commercial channels to signal for the breaks!
Would they not also be a cue to transmission that the programme is coming out and they need to start the ads?
Exactly, with ITV (and sometimes on the BBC) they were/are a cue by the programme to transmission as an indication that the part/programme was about to end. There's no point in transmission cueing themselves.
This does actually make sense. Thanks.
I suppose I just never thought of it that way because I've never seen them on DVD before. But now I think of it, I don't own much ITV stuff on DVD...
ITV did use the cue dot in tx as well as burned in on programmes; the Night-Time and CITV sections had them to allow regions to know when ads were due to start. But generally, as has been said, they were burned in on each programme.
One thing that has confused me though is that I've noticed that in the 1970s plenty of shows (studio-based, especially sitcoms) had a left-hand cue-dot placed at random points in the programme. This didn't appear to have anything to do with transmission; did studios in the 70s use these as editing cues?
Presentation would often be asked to "flash your dots" by the programme (especially OBs) they were lining up with so that they could check that they were watching the right feed.
ITV did use the cue dot in tx as well as burned in on programmes; the Night-Time and CITV sections had them to allow regions to know when ads were due to start. But generally, as has been said, they were burned in on each programme.
One thing that has confused me though is that I've noticed that in the 1970s plenty of shows (studio-based, especially sitcoms) had a left-hand cue-dot placed at random points in the programme. This didn't appear to have anything to do with transmission; did studios in the 70s use these as editing cues?
Live ITV programmes such as Magpie and Tiswas had left hand cue dots. I believe this was to cue TK and VTR areas to roll inserts.
ITV used cue dots to cue the regional transmission centres to roll their ads - As I recall, Dots on meant one minute to the break (or for live shows,
approximately
one minute to the break). Dots off meant 5" to the break. They're still used on many live shows on ITV.
On the BBC, cue dots were used to tell a live programme when they were going on air (particularly programmes being produced by a regional centre or an OB as they didn't automatically receive flashing red lights from the presentation control rooms). Pres would put the dots on at TX -2 minutes, take them off at -10", back on at '5" and off at TX.
The only part of the BBC to use Cue Dots in the commercial manner was BBC World and BBC Prime until about 2002.