I do feel sad and uneasy writing about something which I feel of what I feel is a iconic building of modern day Britain and today mark its last major day in my life before getting redesigned and remade for a 21st century Britain.
Its not a building near to where I live or to have worked in but for at least 3 years of my life when I was travelling past the building on the central line for a busy day at Thames Valley University in Ealing.
Its not a building near to where I live or to have worked in but for at least 3 years of my life when I was travelling past the building on the central line for a busy day at Thames Valley University in Ealing.
I am talking about the iconic BBC Television Centre in London. As
today marks the last network news programme to be broadcasted from the site
before all news operations move to Broadcasting House in the Centre of
London.
Since I started on
my journey of working in the media, I initially thought the pinnacle
job for me to work was working for the BBC and the seeing the building on my to
and from University during 2000 to 2003 gave me the buzz and
the inspiration to say to myself "one day, you will be working
from a place like this".
When I see this building every day I went past it, I often
remembered some of my favourite and memorable recordings from there. For
example I still remember shows which I watched on my TV when I was growing up;
Like and Kicking was a favourite of mine – and I remember the programme
featuring two of my friends being filmed for a feature about how good
Sittingbourne is a place to live.
As a reporter, some of the BBC News features and programmes from the
centre had a major influence of me becoming a reporter. Iconic bulletins and
news items like the famine report in Ethiopia in 1984 – which kicked off the
Live Aid fundraising – and Matt Frei’s news piece about poverty in Japan are
both perfect examples of how a story should be told to a news viewer.
One of my memorable broadcasts was the Invasion of the news studio
TC 7 in 1988. It was when the 6 o’clock news was invaded by two lesbian
protestors over clause 28 of the ‘then’ local government Bill - the lack of promotion
of homosexuality. I remember that from the start of the programme things did
not look right and after a small commotion, things died down the news continued
to be broadcasted. Sue Lawley news reading from this was so professional it set
an example of how to be a excellent newsreader and it was to happen again today,
I don’t think that many newsreaders can match what Sue did in that in that news
studio.
In 2002, I also did have the opportunity to go and see a programme
being recorded of 'Question of Sport' with the recording taking place I think
it was TC 3. The experience of the day as a member of the studio audience was
very interesting and an enjoyable experience, when you get the opportunity to
walk around such a building, your mind gets taken back to what the building
must have been like in its hay day of the Seventies and the Eighties.
Also when the Underground wasn’t working past the White City
station, I also often walked past the building which hosted the BBC Network
newsroom. I wish I had the opportunity to work there just for one day as a NJ
just so that I can get the feeling of what it was like to work in a
memorable building.
I do have to admit;
nowadays the building is too big for a 'slimmed-down' version of the BBC. Especially
with most of the work coming from the Media city complex in Salford and New
Broadcasting House in the centre of London, at the time the building was going
to be sold, I felt that the building should have been preserved in one way –
shape or form.
So I was happy to
heat that the building will e renovated and 3 of the studios will stay open,
and after seeing the plans for the site, I am actually impressed of how it will
look once it is finished in 2014.
In fairness I would have jumped at the chance to work in such a
building and the opportunity to work and to be in the studio audience there
will still be there once it has reopened but the look and the feel of the place
will not be the same compared to the old building which so many memories I will
have with me for the rest of my life.
RIP BBC
Television Centre 1960 - 2013 - you will never be forgotten.
