BBC News: Nostalgia

[Steve]

Yes, that makes sense - thanks @deejay. Presume also the reason why now it seems the news presenter does the ident announcement too - channels just have to fade to black and there's one pick up across the networks.

[DTV]

Stumbling across this Election Call programme from the 2001 election and am intrigued as to where it is coming from.



It's not a set I've seen before. At first I assumed Millbank, but the only clips I've seen of Westminster Live from that era come from the newsroom set and the space looks too not cramped to be the studio they now use. I then assumed a regional studio as it does have certain stylings unique to the regional sets. But I can't match it, plus the desk looks too 'proper' for the regional sets and I don't believe the red carpets were introduced until the September 2002 rebrands.

It just seems odd to build a standard-style set for a programme that didn't really need one. Doubly odd considering that N6 would have been free at the time it went out (though if they continued in studio for the 'webcast' it would clash with the 10:00 morning summary). The presence of what look like sockets on the set wall (just to the right of the desk in the wide shot) also suggest it isn't just a one time set.

[Stuart]

It's not a set I've seen before. At first I assumed Millbank, but the only clips I've seen of Westminster Live from that era come from the newsroom set and the space looks too not cramped to be the studio they now use. I then assumed a regional studio as it does have certain stylings unique to the regional sets. But I can't match it, plus the desk looks too 'proper' for the regional sets and I don't believe the red carpets were introduced until the September 2002 rebrands

Peter Sissions states at the beginning of the programme that it's from Nottingham.

[Mike]

Very much the EMT set at Nottingham, it's name checked in the first few minutes as Stuart says

The red carpet looks like set dressing for this programme - the carpet normally there would have been blue.

I do wonder why Nottingham though, perhaps Tony Blair was there for the day campaigning; the EMT studio at the time was the most up to date regional studio out there (being opened in 1999, and predating MHS), so maybe the powers that be decided it was suitable as it was capable of 16:9 on DTT/DSat?

The desks were all standard sizes for the substantive regions too, so wouldn't use the fact it looks too proper to guide you - it was generally the set fixings like the walls and screens that varied in size and layout, but the desk and chairs were all the same. Exceptions included the smaller sub-opt studios.

[DTV]

Very much the EMT set at Nottingham, it's name checked in the first few minutes as Stuart says



The red carpet looks like set dressing for this programme - the carpet normally there would have been blue.



I do wonder why Nottingham though, perhaps Tony Blair was there for the day campaigning; the EMT studio at the time was the most up to date regional studio out there (being opened in 1999, and predating MHS), so maybe the powers that be decided it was suitable as it was capable of 16:9 on DTT/DSat?



The desks were all standard sizes for the substantive regions too, so wouldn't use the fact it looks too proper to guide you - it was generally the set fixings like the walls and screens that varied in size and layout, but the desk and chairs were all the same. Exceptions included the smaller sub-opt studios.

Whoops, don't know how I missed that name check - a bit embarrassing.

I'm not sure about the desks being standarised for that rollout though. They are largely of a similar design, but there are clear differences in the dimensions between regions and there is a bit of variation in the finishes. There's also the Midlands Today monstrosity and the Reporting Scotland desk that gains points for including a saltire rather than the standard cross, but loses them again for not being oval.

[Mike]

Whoops, don't know how I missed that name check - a bit embarrassing.

I'm not sure about the desks being standarised for that rollout though. They are largely of a similar design, but there are clear differences in the dimensions between regions and there is a bit of variation in the finishes. There's also the Midlands Today monstrosity and the Reporting Scotland desk that gains points for including a saltire rather than the standard cross, but loses them again for not being oval.

Of course the Midlands Today desk started out the same as Nottingham's - it changed on a random date to the weird eye shape desk. I actually didn't mind it - I think it was built for BBC World and ended up with Midlands Today for some reason, and was a little bit too big for the studio it ended up in - I think the idea was they could get reporters and sport presenters on it at the same time.

[JLav25]

Apologies if shared before, but a rare appearance of a Pre-1999 Out of Studio News Presentation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHOam4JwR-Y&t

[DTV]

Apologies if shared before, but a rare appearance of a Pre-1999 Out of Studio News Presentation

Interesting, never knew they presented internationally in those days. I knew that they had presented from Edinburgh on the day after the first devolved elections (also the last weekday of the 'virtual' era), but always assumed that was a one-off and possibly connected to the upcoming rebrand. Like with standing presentation, guess it started earlier than is often assumed. Though I would say that out of studio presentation didn't really became a non-rare occurance until the mid-2000s, I wouldn't really associate that shift with the 1999 rebrand.

[JLav25]

Apologies if shared before, but a rare appearance of a Pre-1999 Out of Studio News Presentation

Interesting, never knew they presented internationally in those days. I knew that they had presented from Edinburgh on the day after the first devolved elections (also the last weekday of the 'virtual' era), but always assumed that was a one-off and possibly connected to the upcoming rebrand. Like with standing presentation, guess it started earlier than is often assumed. Though I would say that out of studio presentation didn't really became a non-rare occurance until the mid-2000s, I wouldn't really associate that shift with the 1999 rebrand.

From what I've heard it was rare, but unusual. There's clips on YT of Michael Buerk presenting from Washington for the 1988 Elections, but I don't know if the same happened in 92 or 96. In Peter Sissons's autobiography, he says he only did three outside broadcasts, including this one so that would suggest it was relatively rare

[harshy]

So much gravitas and it felt special the angle used, Peter Sissons, it felt like a special broadcast you don’t get that sort of effect these days.

[Tom]

On this day in 1999, a new look BBC News launched:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cei325Ojl84 - Morning News Summary
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULEzhz--OyM - One O'Clock News
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOQB1VWstII - Six O'Clock News
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySE-zpULDQg - Nine O'Clock News

[DTV]

I've been trying to find out about the mysterious Studio N3, but the few shreds of info available on the old place are patchy and a little contradictory. I'm going to summarise what info I have and I wonder if anybody could verify it, correct it or add to it.

- The newsroom set that was constructed in 1986 for daytime summaries and refurbed in 1988 for the Nine O'Clock News was not, contrary to some claims, known as N3 at the time - being controlled through N2's gallery instead.
- At some point after all BBC network news moved into N2 in April 1993, this section of the newsroom was walled off and turned into a basic bluescreen VR studio with its own mini-gallery. This was known as N3.
- In September 1994 this became home to Working Lunch, which remained here until moving into TC7 with Breakfast News and Newsnight in 1997/98.
- The studio also included a partial/small version of the main news set.

[chris]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOQB1VWstII - Six O'Clock News

I hadn’t seen this full video before. Thanks for sharing. 

Some interesting things about the 6 update at launch. A generic sting, and I didn’t know it originally included an update from the regions. Does anyone know how it worked? NWT then do a normal close or hand over to the national weather? How long did this last? Did they do a 6:15 round-up and regional opt from launch too?

I don’t think an update was ever done for the 9 but launched with the 10. Interesting nothing was ever introduced for the 1.

[AaronLancs]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOQB1VWstII - Six O'Clock News

I hadn’t seen this full video before. Thanks for sharing. 

Some interesting things about the 6 update at launch. A generic sting, and I didn’t know it originally included an update from the regions. Does anyone know how it worked? NWT then do a normal close or hand over to the national weather? How long did this last? Did they do a 6:15 round-up and regional opt from launch too?

I don’t think an update was ever done for the 9 but launched with the 10. Interesting nothing was ever introduced for the 1.

Also was it the first time ever that the weather was delivered in person in the actual news studio itself instead of the dedicated weather studio? If so, history in the making.

[Steve in Pudsey]

That depends on whether you consider Breakfast Time to be a News programme.