AGAIN back onto some sort of topic.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jh ... 1-0711.xmlFormula one on television: the formula for F1 coverage worthy of Lewis Hamilton
Last Updated: 12:01am GMT 07/11/2008
Next year, F1 returns to the BBC. Matt Warman assesses how it can improve on ITV’s erratic efforts.
When Britain’s new world champion Lewis Hamilton lines up on the grid in Melbourne on March 16 for the opening grand prix of 2009, British TV viewers will notice plenty of changes. Not only will there be new cars and new kit, but Hamilton, and all the rest of the F1 circus, will be live on the BBC for the first time since 1996. Many fans are hoping that the Corporation’s coverage will be significantly different from that which ITV has offered over the past 12 years.
Driving standards up: Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton
Most viewers’ biggest frustration was that on ITV the 200mph excitement of Formula One was interrupted by adverts – obviously that won’t be a problem on the BBC. But it’s worth noting that ITV hadn’t wanted to interrupt its coverage either. It asked to pause transmission for advert breaks: British viewers would end up about 15 minutes behind real-time by the end of a race, but wouldn’t have missed a single second. However, Formula One’s owners allegedly vetoed anything but a live stream.
The most likely changes will come among the commentary team. A vociferous online campaign is ranged against ITV’s commentator James Allen, and few in the industry think he will be the BBC’s first choice. Insiders say that too many viewers feel his patter is irritatingly verbose and lacks the charming charisma of the retired Murray Walker. Contractual negotiations are still in progress, but the authoritative Jonathan Legard or Sky’s A1 GP commentator, the likeably ebullient Ben Edwards, are thought to be the favourites to sit next to the co-commentator, the quick-witted and knowledgeable Martin Brundle, who looks almost certain to move from ITV to the BBC. Recently retired driver David Coulthard is tipped to provide expert analysis.
advertisement
It’s vital that the BBC chooses the right commentator and pundits because, thanks to Hamilton’s success, F1 is certain to win many more viewers (and there are a lot as it is: Sunday’s race was watched by a peak figure of 12.5million). Many of next year’s viewers will be new to the sport – meaning that commentators will need to mix expertise with accessibility, explaining the basics without patronising petrolheads.
It’s yet to be decided how much on-location reporting there will be, however, because it’s far costlier than studio time. The BBC was criticised for spending £200million on the F1 rights, and how much is left in the kitty is not known. Rumours that the Top Gear presenters were likely to be involved are now thought to be wide of the mark.
The budget will be tested, too, when it comes to footage of events away from the race. ITV took its own cameras to cover the pit lanes and to make the best of the post-race media scrums, but the BBC may decide that this is too costly, given the constraints of the licence fee.
In any case, opinion is divided on the value of pit-lane footage. A senior F1 figure at the BBC has suggested that “there’s not much value in hearing from someone who has to shout to be heard, and can’t reveal anything people don’t know in the studio anyway”.
One thing the BBC should do is learn from a gadget familiar to visitors to grands prix: Kangaroo TV. This handheld television allows users to control their own programming, combining audio from team radios, driver cams and reams of statistics, all via one screen. Many viewers will be hoping that innovations such as greater access to team radios will be incorporated in the BBC’s coverage of the new season – although it’s vital that these innovations don’t crowd out footage of the race itself. Several people involved in the BBC’s coverage have privately expressed distaste for a flashy but inessential American-style G-force meter that tells viewers how much pressure the driver’s body is under.
Further innovations with cameras are unlikely to be much within the BBC’s sphere of influence, given that F1’s owners will still be in control of the live stream. The BBC may have paid a fortune for the television rights, but that doesn’t mean it can do whatever it likes. “Obviously there are negotiations,” says one source, “but ultimately we don’t control the video feed during races.”
The one thing the BBC can definitely control, however, is the theme tune for its coverage. If it brings back Fleetwood Mac’s The Chain, many fans of a certain age will be very happy. While we wait to see what innovations the BBC will introduce, it would be comforting to see it turn to that favourite of races past.
