Pre-Launch BBC News: Studio B Refit

[CantGetIn]

I really don’t think it makes sense launching a new studio and set with the old branding. Although I’d like to think they’ve created one that will work with the old and new, I hope we don’t see a repeat of the 2003 N6 fiasco. That set didn’t look amazing to begin with in the ‘Red & Cream’ era but after the switch to the ‘Clamshells’ less than an year later it just didn’t fit it at all.

These are two separate things, possibly which are related on one level, but on another they are very much separate. To do both things at once would be a big undertaking. I doubt it would happen.

[DTV]

I don’t really understand this discussion. The BBC’s news sets have always focused heavily around the colour red, which is the branding. It’s no different to ITV News or Channel 4 News’ sets. You don’t want them to basically be a physical form of your titles.

The only time I thought it didn’t match was 2003 when the cream titles were still in use in a heavily red / silver set. Even the on-set screens used a completely different brand to the titles.

I'm sorry, but I disagree. Most recent ITN and Sky sets have, in some way, payed homage to their respective titles in a way that BBC News sets just haven't - the current and previous ITV News sets and old Sky News centre being particularly good examples of this. Other than the colour red - and even then it isn't always the correct shade - I don't think any recent BBC News set has really tied in to wider branding. The 2012/13 NBH sets come the closest, but even then it's still quite a reach.

From 2003 to 2013, national news came from rectangular sets despite titles that didn't feature a single right angle (other than the BBC logo). The clamshell-era used black and dark red graphics, yet the 2003 N8 set and 2006 N6 set used very light colour schemes (The 2004 N9 set might have been appropriately dark, but this is only because they gave up replacing broken lights). With the switch to white and red graphics in 2008, the sets were conversely made darker.

I'm not saying that BBC News sets should be perfect representations of title graphics, but it is possible to design sets that are significantly closer in style and colour palette than the BBC has managed since the cream and red era. Jago's own design for TV4 in Sweden is oddly a better fit for the white and red pulsating globe graphics than their 2008 or 2013 designs.

---

I really don’t think it makes sense launching a new studio and set with the old branding. Although I’d like to think they’ve created one that will work with the old and new, I hope we don’t see a repeat of the 2003 N6 fiasco. That set didn’t look amazing to begin with in the ‘Red & Cream’ era but after the switch to the ‘Clamshells’ less than an year later it just didn’t fit it at all.

These are two separate things, possibly which are related on one level, but on another they are very much separate. To do both things at once would be a big undertaking. I doubt it would happen.

I don't get some people's obsession with declaring that it is impossible for the BBC to do two things at the same time, especially when they have previously manged to do those things at the same time in the past. There are numerous cases of BBC News launching new branding and sets on the same day. The 1993 rebrand, the cream and red rebrands, the 2003 BBC News 24 rebrand, 2008 BBC national and News Channel rebrands all saw new titles, graphics and sets introduced at the same time. Other refreshes/upgrades of graphics - such as 2006 and 2013 - have also coincided with launches of new sets.

The choice of the BBC and BBC News to stagger this rebrand so much is just that - a choice. Doing all of this at the same time would have been logistically possible, but it appears that a mixture of choice and poor planning has meant that it hasn't gone that way. Some might argue that BBC News didn't execute a full rebrand with the new logo launch in 1997, but that again was presumably through choice - the 1993 look wasn't especially old at the time and they were soon going to be moving to the new News Centre in a few months and presumably would have preferred to wait.

[CantGetIn]

I don’t really understand this discussion. The BBC’s news sets have always focused heavily around the colour red, which is the branding. It’s no different to ITV News or Channel 4 News’ sets. You don’t want them to basically be a physical form of your titles.

The only time I thought it didn’t match was 2003 when the cream titles were still in use in a heavily red / silver set. Even the on-set screens used a completely different brand to the titles.

I'm sorry, but I disagree. Most recent ITN and Sky sets have, in some way, payed homage to their respective titles in a way that BBC News sets just haven't - the current and previous ITV News sets and old Sky News centre being particularly good examples of this. Other than the colour red - and even then it isn't always the correct shade - I don't think any recent BBC News set has really tied in to wider branding. The 2012/13 NBH sets come the closest, but even then it's still quite a reach.

From 2003 to 2013, national news came from rectangular sets despite titles that didn't feature a single right angle (other than the BBC logo). The clamshell-era used black and dark red graphics, yet the 2003 N8 set and 2006 N6 set used very light colour schemes (The 2004 N9 set might have been appropriately dark, but this is only because they gave up replacing broken lights). With the switch to white and red graphics in 2008, the sets were conversely made darker.

I'm not saying that BBC News sets should be perfect representations of title graphics, but it is possible to design sets that are significantly closer in style and colour palette than the BBC has managed since the cream and red era. Jago's own design for TV4 in Sweden is oddly a better fit for the white and red pulsating globe graphics than their 2008 or 2013 designs.

---

I really don’t think it makes sense launching a new studio and set with the old branding. Although I’d like to think they’ve created one that will work with the old and new, I hope we don’t see a repeat of the 2003 N6 fiasco. That set didn’t look amazing to begin with in the ‘Red & Cream’ era but after the switch to the ‘Clamshells’ less than an year later it just didn’t fit it at all.

These are two separate things, possibly which are related on one level, but on another they are very much separate. To do both things at once would be a big undertaking. I doubt it would happen.

I don't get some people's obsession with declaring that it is impossible for the BBC to do two things at the same time, especially when they have previously manged to do those things at the same time in the past. There are numerous cases of BBC News launching new branding and sets on the same day. The 1993 rebrand, the cream and red rebrands, the 2003 BBC News 24 rebrand, 2008 BBC national and News Channel rebrands all saw new titles, graphics and sets introduced at the same time. Other refreshes/upgrades of graphics - such as 2006 and 2013 - have also coincided with launches of new sets.

The choice of the BBC and BBC News to stagger this rebrand so much is just that - a choice. Doing all of this at the same time would have been logistically possible, but it appears that a mixture of choice and poor planning has meant that it hasn't gone that way. Some might argue that BBC News didn't execute a full rebrand with the new logo launch in 1997, but that again was presumably through choice - the 1993 look wasn't especially old at the time and they were soon going to be moving to the new News Centre in a few months and presumably would have preferred to wait.

I don't think anyone said it was impossible DTV. You are talking about a different BBC era when those previous rebrands took place. Everything has been reduced since then. I wouldn't say it was an obsession either, just fact. The BBC could do it if it wanted to yes, but how many other things would have to get left while they did it? At the end of the day their job is to aid in reporting the news or allow some of the systems which are required to work, to work, not please us the TV geeks. Making us happy but messing up their actual job, means they get it, not me, not you, not any of us. I think if I was in their shoes I would play it safe as well.

[Jexedback]

Don’t be disillusioned with the old branding.
Just wait until you see the space.

It’s brilliant.
The space more than makes up for the branding delays.

[lepeterrr]

Don’t be disillusioned with the old branding.
Just wait until you see the space.

It’s brilliant.
The space more than makes up for the branding delays.

Ooooh, So is it a June launch basically definite then?

[mdta]

Set branding these days, usually means replacing video on screens, coloured lighting, and seat covers.

[Inspector Sands]

Don’t be disillusioned with the old branding.
Just wait until you see the space.

It’s brilliant.
The space more than makes up for the branding delays.

And there'll be one feature that is going to go down very well on here 

[thomalex]

Don’t be disillusioned with the old branding.
Just wait until you see the space.

It’s brilliant.
The space more than makes up for the branding delays.

And there'll be one feature that is going to go down very well on here 

Here’s hoping it’s a large central glass crest

[Joe]

Don’t be disillusioned with the old branding.
Just wait until you see the space.

It’s brilliant.
The space more than makes up for the branding delays.

And there'll be one feature that is going to go down very well on here 

Bit odd to use the TVS archive in a news set but okay

[mccanmat]

Ooooh is it going to have a desk that can move up and down? where Huw rises out of the ground to read the news and then heads back down at the end of the bulletin?

[harshy]

Ooooh is it going to have a desk that can move up and down? where Huw rises out of the ground to read the news and then heads back down at the end of the bulletin?

They can teleport the presenters from Salford to studio b :-)

[deejay]

Not sure what their source is for that - as it’s for a high profile national bulletin, it’ll launch when it’s ready.

Which is...?

… not yet announced. Sorry.

[AaronLancs]

As someone who has followed this thread with interest. Can I say with regard to sets and rebranding. Don't sweat the small stuff. The main rebrand / revamp / whatever will come along when it is ready and not before its time.

The Beeb have shown themselves to be geniuses when it comes to having studio sets have flexibility with branding. Look at the previous version of Studio B to see that. A studio that housed Newsnight, Victoria Derbyshire, Andrew Marr and the BBC World News branded programming.




And these for Studio C:

*
*

So all in all when you have a bunch of sets that are that flexible. You don't need to smack a BBC News logo on it when you have the screens doing all the hard lifting. In the case of the studios shown, a combo platter of LEDs, Barcos, Plasmas and Lightboxes. So unlike - for example - the Good Morning Britain set with has the ITV and GMB logos plastered all over thus rendering it unusable for other potential programming if it were to be used for anything else. The Beeb can just let the screens and lightboxes do all the work in getting the studio on air - with the current branding - and then as when the time comes change over the video / image files into whatever will be needed delete old ones and add new ones and hey presto a "new set" with new branding and no need to update the set at all.

(All images sourced from TV Live except, those marked with * are sourced from the website of set design company Jago Design)

[Martin]

Ooooh is it going to have a desk that can move up and down? where Huw rises out of the ground to read the news and then heads back down at the end of the bulletin?

[Brekkie]

As someone who has followed this thread with interest. Can I say with regard to sets and rebranding. Don't sweat the small stuff. The main rebrand / revamp / whatever will come along when it is ready and not before its time.

The Beeb have shown themselves to be geniuses when it comes to having studio sets have flexibility with branding. Look at the previous version of Studio B to see that. A studio that housed Newsnight, Victoria Derbyshire, Andrew Marr and the BBC World News branded programming.




And these for Studio C:

*
*

So all in all when you have a bunch of sets that are that flexible. You don't need to smack a BBC News logo on it when you have the screens doing all the hard lifting. In the case of the studios shown, a combo platter of LEDs, Barcos, Plasmas and Lightboxes. So unlike - for example - the Good Morning Britain set with has the ITV and GMB logos plastered all over thus rendering it unusable for other potential programming if it were to be used for anything else. The Beeb can just let the screens and lightboxes do all the work in getting the studio on air - with the current branding - and then as when the time comes change over the video / image files into whatever will be needed delete old ones and add new ones and hey presto a "new set" with new branding and no need to update the set at all.

(All images sourced from TV Live except, those marked with * are sourced from the website of set design company Jago Design)

The trouble is all that shows is how bad the red used for most output actually is.  The studio almost always looks better in other colours. The same goes for the Salford set too.