BBC Production Co-Ordinator Apprenticeship - Placement #2

I finished my previous blog post at the end of my first placement on the Production Co-Ordinator Apprenticeship with ‘but the adventure must continue’, and wow, it certainly has! Soon after writing that post, it was confirmed that I had secured my dream placement.

I have always had a huge passion for radio and have always sought out opportunities to experience this industry as it is where I have always seen myself ending up in my career. From doing work experience at BBC Radio 1 at the age of 16, to volunteering at my local hospital radio station and even attempting my own radio podcast (yes, attempting is definitely the key word there), I returned to the location in the first point in that list. Yes, my dream had finally come true and on February 25th, I found myself walking through the doors of Radio 1 on the 8th floor of Broadcasting House.

Aside from my draw to radio, I have also always been interested in working in the world of events and events management. I touched upon this in a very small way at school, organising many of our Sixth Form events including our Prom, the school talent show, a Christmas party for a local school and a fundraiser to raise money for that party; and it was this introduction to events management that inspired me to seek more opportunities in an industry that I could see myself making use of my organisational head and attention-to-detail.

So, thanks to my scheme manager on the apprenticeship, I ended up at the absolute ideal placement for me. Radio + Events = Radio Events. And here I am! To give the team their deserved full title, the Live Music and Events team in Radio Popular Music. If you’ve ever listened, watched or even been to an event for Radio 1, 1Xtra, Radio 2, 6 Music or BBC Introducing, it would have been organised by the lovely team I am currently sitting alongside now as I write this. Radio 1’s Big Weekend, Radio 2 in Hyde Park, 1Xtra Live, The Teen Awards, 6 Music Festival – the list goes on and on.

One of the best parts about this placement has been the huge amount of trust that the team have put in me. I’ve been given a great deal of responsibility which I really appreciate and respect, and for that reason I’ve made sure I’ve put 110% into everything I’ve done so they wouldn’t regret it. So hopefully they haven’t!

Within the first days of this placement, I was already on a train to Manchester to work at the first ever 6 Music Festival. I was immediately thrown into a DJ and artist liaison role and loved every minute. Experiencing such a large event within my first days prepared me to understand the coordination and logistical process that goes into achieving the end result that I witnessed in Manchester, and helped me to know how to continue whilst working towards Radio 1’s Big Weekend – a project I have completely admired.

Two years ago when the team were organising one of their biggest events to date, the Hackney Weekend, I found myself at the Hackney Academy listening to a talk given by Neil Wyatt, the Live Events Manager who was heading up the event. I was completely absorbed in everything he had to say and now I can’t quite believe I’m sitting here two years on working with the same team on the Radio 1 Big Weekend in Glasgow. I’ve done a full loop, and as much as I enjoyed sitting on my sofa at home and watching Jay Z and Rihanna on telly playing the Big Weekend that year in 2012, I have absolutely no doubt that I will much prefer 2014 and I guarantee I will stand pinching myself when I see Coldplay in Glasgow. And even more importantly, as I run around in the mud on Glasgow Green chasing after artists to get them on stage, the thought of that sofa in 2012 will become an increasingly distant one.

One of the main projects I have been involved in is the ongoing BBC Introducing programme and I have absolutely loved it! It’s a fantastic scheme that supports unsigned and under-the-radar musicians – it’s an incredible opportunity for artists trying to break the industry, and from my perspective, an equally amazing scheme to work on. I have been involved in the organisation of the Introducing stages at some of the upcoming summer festivals, including Big Weekend, Glastonbury and T in the Park. I’ve been responsible for asking for recommendations from the local shows, sending these to a panel of presenters, producers and music experts for their opinions and then contacting the artists and confirming their availability once the line-up was chosen. I have also worked with the Introducing team to decipher to final running order at Big Weekend to ensure a variety across both days. The whole process was an extremely interesting and eye-opening experience, particularly because of my love for music and what better way to spend your day than by listening to a ton of new music! Of course, that isn’t all I do but I have spent the odd day here and there just browsing through the Uploader for some fantastic new music, which there is a huge abundance of out there.

I’ve also done a spot of writing for the BBC Introducing blog each week, listening to some more fantastic music that has made it onto the Introducing slot on the Radio 1 playlist and then writing about it. This job just gets better and better.

From working on 6 Music Festival, to Big Weekend in two weekend’s time, I’ve also been fortunate enough to work on Jo Whiley’s Sport Relief Challenge, the Radio 1 Academy, as well as looking ahead to Glastonbury, T in the Park and Radio 2 In Concert with Kylie this week!

With just days to go until I get on the train to Glasgow, the anticipation for the festival is building on the 8th Floor and across Glasgow it seems. Everybody is extraordinarily busy but also incredibly excited for the weekend and I feel truly inspired by the team I’m working with, with brains that can be best described as Big Weekend encyclopaedias! The creativity, organisation prowess and dedication of everybody working towards the event is admirable and I feel incredibly lucky to be doing my dream job surrounded by these people.

Onward to Glasgow!

 

BBC Production Co-Ordinator Apprentice Scheme - PLACEMENT #1

It may seem like I’ve completely abandoned my blog recently, and whilst this is slightly true, I’ve had a complete whirlwind six months that have distracted me, and fairly so!

Having spent night-after-night writing and tweaking my answers, I eventually clicked ‘Submit’, sending an application to the BBC for a place on the BBC Production Apprenticeship scheme.

After a long summer of waiting, an email shocked through my inbox inviting me to an interview at BBC Elstree. Having met so many talented and passionate people, I was beginning to doubt my chances but was grateful for the interview experience I attained.

Just a few weeks later, I was contacted inviting me to attend a second interview, but this time for a different scheme. My love of organisation and planning must have come through to the assessors, who recommended I apply for the BBC Production Co-Ordinator Apprenticeship instead.

“Would you be able to come to Broadcasting House on Thursday 15th August?”

“Sure, of course, thank you!” I immediately responded. Just seconds later, I began to question why this date seemed so familiar in my mind; of course, it was my A Level Results day. If one day wasn’t already stressful enough, I now had the added pressure of the most important meeting in my life so far.

BBC Broadcasting House

Less than a week after my second interview, I received a call offering me a place on the Production Co-Ordinator scheme. Shock, nerves and excitement thundered through me as I looked forward to the 30th September and the all-important first day.

Having already met some of my fellow apprentices at our interview, I felt at ease as soon as I saw a handful of familiar faces in the room. Quickly I began to mingle and meet all of my fellow apprentices. It wasn’t long before we were all smiling, laughing and on our way to the pub after work! Many friendships begun on that day and I know that I’ll hold them dear for a very long time.

Upon entering the BBC Academy at Elstree, I have always felt hugely welcome and supported by the amazing team that run the apprenticeships and training schemes. My scheme manager, Maddy, and scheme co-ordinator, Darren, have been incredibly supportive from Day 1, firstly for giving me this opportunity having read my application and interviewed me, as well as their ongoing help and support 24/7 during our training and whilst out on our industry placements. Having started this scheme fresh out of secondary school, I really do have Gilly and Martina, our scheme assessors, a lot to thank for due to the incredibly useful and insightful training they gave us to prepare for our placements in the TV and radio industries; I’m not quite sure what I would have done without it. The organisation that the whole team have put into planning every finite detail of our apprenticeship, from co-ordinating our training, finding our placements and assessing our evidence and coursework, has been fantastic and one of the countless reasons why I would recommend this opportunity to anybody with an interest in working in the media.

I’m now coming to the end of my first placement and the 3 months have completely shot by; but time flies when you’re having fun. BBC Music Television was an ideal first placement for me and I’ve had the opportunity to work on some incredible shows that I’ve grown up watching. Top of the Pops and Jools Holland’s Hootenanny are iconic British TV shows that I feel very fortunate to have worked as a runner on. The experiences I had in December at these two programmes were made by the very intelligent, organised and talented colleagues around me, as well as by the guests and presenters I was responsible for looking after. They say that you should never meet your idols but I’ve certainly met some of mine in the past three months and will cherish the memories of meeting such genuinely lovely and interesting people.

Jools Holland Hootenanny

Another highlight from my time at my first placement was achieving my first broadcast credit as a Production Team Assistant on Sir John Tavener Remembered, a documentary shown on BBC4 on New Year’s Eve. There’s no greater buzz than seeing in the New Year celebrating the hard work you put into a programme.

One of the reasons I have loved BBC Music Television is the variety of roles I’ve been able to take on. As a Departmental Production Management Assistant, I’ve been very fortunate to have a role that oversees the whole department with the opportunity to work on all sorts of productions and projects. From BBC Learning, to Classical Music documentaries, Entertainment Music documentaries and larger Popular Music shows, my experience here has always been diverse, interesting and full of different challenges and opportunities to learn.

The iconic Top of the Pops sign

My colleagues here have always been supportive, helpful and willing to teach me and give me opportunities to learn and develop myself and I can’t thank them enough. I’ll be keeping in touch with many people here and will miss them when I’m gone.

But the adventure must continue – but where will I go next? My second placement is nearly here but still TBC. Watch this space!