Heart
Reciever
Playing on the heart strings of 40,000 listeners!
What you can hear now is the operning to the LIVE Radio Show I helped create!
(To stop audio playing while reading press pause on the button in the bottom corner of the title)
Broadcasting a live radio show that really pulls on heart string is hard, but defiantly a show that will stick with you for a while. Presenters tearing up while LIVE on air, discussing transplants and donations, and sharing powerful true stories from real people, the show really was something I'm proud of.
This was unlike any production I have ever done before. Sort of a combination of when I created a podcast, had a radio show on PureFM, and when I helped write a script for the Live TV shows. This Radio LIVE broadcast kept me on my feet and helped me understand the work that can go into a complex radio show. I used to think it was people just talking into a microphone in a sound booth, playing music. However, creating a broadcast package for on air was a challenging experience. When filming normally you really on images, locations and sets to help the story of the words progress. But there is none of that on the radio... My only option was to learn sound design (layering of different sounds on top of each other) in order to create a soundscape for the listeners.
Whom ever thinks editing audio is easy is in for a shock. There is not video to hide behind and if you mess up the sound, or it is bad quality people notice right away. I was lucky enough to be in a situation where my family's story was really useful within the show. The personal connection with the guests provided me the opportunity to use my knowledge of them to draw out emotive comments and allowed me to utilise them in my audio package.
The set up to the day was also a little different to the normal atmosphere I would normally experience on a Live show basis. With the team split in two, one in the Express FM studio and the other in another location in the building, being linked via skype gave a sense of unease as we got closer to the time. It presented us with more worries... what would happen if the connection between the two studios failed, or there was a delay between the live broadcast signal and what we were listening to. However, after a few rehearsals and some last minute tweeters in, the atmosphere seemed to get very calm just as we went on air. The show itself kept us on our toes, with interviews ending short we had to make sure we had enough extra content in our back pockets to use. Fortunately we had enough interest in the show for the public to tweet in and let us know their stories, which we used to fill any short gaps.
Although a great experience, I still think my place is in TV and Broadcasting rather than radio. However, every opportunity I have to learn and gain new skills and knowledge is always welcome!
Listen again to our one-off radio show 'Unsung Heroes' which was broadcast live on Express FM from Eldon Building at the University of Portsmouth. There are some heroes in our lives that are not often mentioned, their contribution has a huge impact on the lives of others. We will be taking a look at the unsung heroes of this country and how they have helped those in need. If you want to find out more about these incredible people and have an interest in the blood and organ donors, then this is worth a listen.
