BBC Radio Cumbria

I worked with BBC Radio Cumbria for a total of two weeks; 7 days in the September of 2019 and 3 in the January of 2020.

I worked as an assistant producer, working mainly on the mid-morning show but I also helped on the breakfast show and the evening news hour.

I accompanied the mid-morning show on an OB to enhance my knowledge of broadcasting outside of the studio and made sure to be very hands on to gain as much as possible from the experience. I also ventured out of the studio to record a number of Vox Pops from members of the local community and edited them into a package. This was a vital part of production for the show considering the benefit of having local voices broadcast on local radio shows.

Inside the studio I rang a number of potential contributors, including former Lib Dem leader Tim Farron when one of our guests failed to show. I appeared on the mid-morning show as both a contestant and a ‘Quiz Master’ in their daily ‘Biz Quiz’ feature. I also attended morning meetings on behalf of the other producers and reported back to them the main stories of the day that had been discussed.

On one of my final days, I produced the mid-morning show myself alongside a young freelancer as neither of the regular producers were available and the show went without a hitch.

Skills I developed there:

• Knowledge of
  • • Phonebox
    • Dira Highlander
    • Dira Startrack
    • Open Media
• Confidence in approaching and recording members of the public
• Knowledge of how to set up and broadcast from outside of the studio
• A more precise understanding of what is needed when editing audio packages

Join me as the quizmaster here:

Here is one of the packages I put together after voxing with the local community: