‘BBC London’ moves into Studio B

“BBC London News” has moved into the recently-overhauled Studio B.

The regional newscast is one of many that the broadcaster produces for specific regions of the United Kingdom and airs for 30 minutes at 6:30 p.m. each evening, following the national “BBC News at Six” as well as a 15-minute version following the 10 p.m. national broadcast.

The London broadcasts transitioned to the same team that produces the 6 and 10 p.m. network newscasts on Oct. 18, 2022, the same day that “London” moved and also the 100th anniversary of the broadcaster.

So far, both of the “BBC London” newscasts start out with the presenter standing in front of the anchor desk with the LED video “monolith” Tower B in the background.

Each newscast starts with a wide bump shot showcasing Tower A sporting the BBC London logo and the presenter waiting for their cue in the background.

Also visible in these wide shots is the spiral staircase, while the far camera right video wall is used to display the date on-screen.

Presenters primarily stay on the camera right side of the studio, with the virtual view of the BBC newsroom behind the anchor desk switched to a version with London-themed imagery shown on select workstations’ screens. Meanwhile, the video wall to the right of the monolith switches to a cityscape view as opposed to the more generic virtual set extensions used here during the national news.

Depending on the news of the day, the catwalk and curved video wall on the camera left side of the studio can also be used and “London” also takes advantage of the multiple cross-shots available thanks to the tracked robotic tower-like units from Electronic Friends.

Other options include interviews at the anchor desk, either in-studio or with the remote feed shown on Tower A.

A localized weather forecast is presented from the far camera right video wall, which is also how most weather updates are presented on the national broadcasts.

BBC invested heavily in completely renovating Studio B as the new home for its national newscasts, first debuting back in June 2022.

The new set features three walls, which are largely clad with seamless LED panels, including ones that wrap around the working balcony.

A working staircase, inspired by the ones in the BBC newsroom, provides access to this area.

The network continues to use Studio E, which features a glass window overlooking the broadcaster’s massive newsroom, for other productions. Studio C, which features a similar set as the one in E but with a video wall in place of the glass, is also still operational. 

All of these facilities are inside of BBC Broadcasting House, sometimes referred to as “New” Broadcasting House, that the network spent billions on renovating and restoring. It became operational in 2013.

Other regional BBC news bulletins are produced out of a variety of broadcast facilities scattered across the U.K., with many of them serving as bureaus or satellite newsrooms of the main one in London.