Ö÷²¥´óÐã Breakfast is live from Salford
Post categories: Ö÷²¥´óÐã News,ÌýÖ÷²¥´óÐã North
| 10:19 UK time, Tuesday, 10 April 2012
The gallery during rehearsals ahead of the first Ö÷²¥´óÐã Breakfast broadcast from Salford.
Every morning for more than a decade, Ö÷²¥´óÐã Breakfast has helped viewers start the day, with its trademark mix of news, issues and guests. Today, it's done just that - but this time from its new studio at MediaCityUK in Salford.
We announced the move two years ago, as part of the Ö÷²¥´óÐã's commitment to developing a strong creative hub in Salford. In recent months, the team has been working hard to bring Breakfast alive in its new home, on time as planned. It's a big day for the team, but in some ways we hope that viewers may not notice that much. Breakfast is still the same programme that viewers know and love as it was last week - the news of the day (the fate of Abu Hamza, the ceasefire that isn't in Syria), issues that matter to viewers (pay day loans, neighbourliness). All that and school champion cup-stacking and some horse whispering too!
Obviously, there's the brand new studio in a new location. We're pleased with the studio that we will share with the news team responsible for putting out the regional bulletins, North West Tonight. It's a flexible modern space, making the most of the latest technology, and with a bright warm look. Breakfast is the first daily Ö÷²¥´óÐã News programme to be broadcast from an HD studio.
There's still a big red sofa and the same Ö÷²¥´óÐã Breakfast logos, titles and music. In fact very much business as usual, broadcasting more than three hours of live news, sport, weather and entertainment every day, the most successful morning show on television. As always, we tried to strike a balance between the big issues of the day and inspiring stories from around the UK.
Bill Turnbull and Susanna Reid on set in the new Ö÷²¥´óÐã Breakfast studio MediaCityUK in Salford.
The presenting team, too, has a familiar look to it. Bill Turnbull and Susanna Reid presented today - later in the week it will be the turn of Charlie Stayt and Louise Minchin. This is our core family of presenters, all now firmly established on the show, along with business presenter Stephanie McGovern, sports presenters Sally Nugent and Mike Bushell, and Carol Kirkwood, Breakfast's weather presenter.
Breakfast is an important part of Ö÷²¥´óÐã News, primarily a news programme - but with a big helping of human interest, entertainment and culture. We get more than our fair share of interesting guests with great stories to tell and some of those guests are household names. This won't change. This morning we were joined by Connie Fisher, star of the Sound of Music and now the lead in Wonderful Town, and Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull.
The Ö÷²¥´óÐã has a rich heritage of journalism in the north of England across local, regional and national outlets. Ö÷²¥´óÐã North is home to Breakfast, regional news and current affairs; network and regional radio programmes, including Radio 5 live and Radio Manchester; plus Ö÷²¥´óÐã Children's and Ö÷²¥´óÐã Sport. Some guests will be down the line - as happened until now with out of London guests - but we know that the red sofa will continue to be a magnet for a great mix of guests.
Breakfast has always been very successful at reflecting all our audiences, no matter where they live, and being in the heart of the UK means we can continue to reflect all points of view. After all, we're a network show and we won't be making a Northern Breakfast any more than we made a London one, although we'll also make the most of our new home. The move comes during a hugely successful period as it continues to reach more than 12 million viewers per week. There are many people who helped make the move successful. But our real appreciation is for our loyal viewers. Breakfast from Salford will continue to serve them.
Mary Hockaday is Head of Newsroom, Ö÷²¥´óÐã
More about the Ö÷²¥´óÐã Breakfast team's move to MediaCityUK in Salford can be found on the Media Centre website.
Comment number 1.
At 10th Apr 2012, Kit Green wrote:The studio looks tiny. Is that picture really of the whole usable area. Smaller than the Gallery? Too many viewers may notice that it is a glorified local news studio.
If that is the best you can come up with due to space constraints (developers these days always make the rooms too small) then you should invest in a decent virtual set to make it look bigger.
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Comment number 2.
At 11th Apr 2012, venit_hora wrote:Agree with Kit. Tiny studio, snugly presenters. Looks like it's in my great granny's front room in Moss Side. Can't actually see the gas mantles but I am sure they are there. And what are these "looks" the presenters give each other? As if they are saying "who the hell is this sitting so close?" The lighting seems poor, the makeup cheap. The whole presentation is like something from the 50s. Bring back Roy Rogers, I say.
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Comment number 3.
At 11th Apr 2012, Trev wrote:Unfortunatly the Ö÷²¥´óÐã built their media centre in the middle of a high crime rate area and so are having to provide personal body guards for their staff.
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Comment number 4.
At 12th Apr 2012, Andrew555e wrote:Who at the beeb has went crazy with colour on the new breakfast set. Feel like I should reach out for my sunglasses. It's not a early evening light entertainment show but a news based show first thing in the morning.
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Comment number 5.
At 12th Apr 2012, Ken wrote:I have just been watching Ö÷²¥´óÐã breakfast (as I have done every morning for years) and for the first time I have switched off early. The new "close up" camera shots of the presenters are uncomfortably close and narrow, really intrusive from the viewers perspective. Have you got a new director who has moved over from ITV or has the old director gone on a course? Please stop it!
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