Filming with the BBC

I am enormously grateful to Andrew Knowles, aka @andrew_writer in the twitterverse. Andrew is a professional copywriter and he is also a BT Storyteller for the London 2012 Olympic Games. It is through this role that he has been able to bring walk2012 (or The Games Way as it is becoming known publicly) to the attention of the BBC.

Andrew Knowles: BT Storyteller for the London2012 Olympic Games

So it was that last Friday Andrew and I found ourselves at the viewpoint at Portland Heights with Simon Clemison, presenter of Spotlight for BBC Southwest.

View from Portland Heights: Chesil beach with Weymouth to the right

The filming process is very interesting to take part in. Firstly we get acquainted and Simon makes lots of notes about the walk and how it came about. Then he explains roughly how the piece will be structured and we start filming.

…or we would if the camera worked! It turns out that the quality of BBC filming comes at a price, and that price is tempermental cameras that are very fussy about dust. This doesn’t phase Simon, despite having driven from Plymouth to film us. A phone call to “support”, a new tape, and a bit of fast-foward and rewinding, and we are back on track.

It’s a couple of takes for Andrew and I to point down to the start of the walk and then start walking. Then Simon interviews me, followed by Andrew, and within a few minutes most of the talking on camera is complete.

Simon Clemison from the BBC with me (in the hat)

Simon pays an awful lot of attention to the sun – in order to keep the lighting constant, otherwise it becomes difficult to edit together. We spend quite a bit of time filming our feet walking, and then we drive down into Wyke Regis and film us walking along part of the Rodwell Trail (it used to be called the old railway line when I was a kid).

Passing dogs and an elderly couple all got roped into the filming, and the sun continued to shine which always makes Portland harbour look beautiful. A man digging for bait just added to the atmosphere!

Digging for bait, with the National Sailing Academy in the background

The finished piece is here – I cannot tell you how excited I am about being able to search the BBC News site for “Mark Stanley” and finding me …and my tiny tiny ego!

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