South East Today

Infobox Television
show_name = BBC South East Today


caption = Programme titles
format = Regional News
runtime = Main bulletin:
30 minutes
presenter = Geoff Clark
Beverley Thompson
(Main anchors)
Kaddy Lee-Preston
Natalie Booker
Michael Fish
(Weather presenters)
channel = BBC One South East
first_aired = September 3 2001
last_aired = present
producer = BBC South East

BBC South East Today is BBC South East's regional television news programme, serving Kent, East Sussex, and parts of West Sussex & Surrey. Prior to its launch on September 3 2001, most of the viewers in the region formerly received Newsroom South East, though some had been previously receiving South Today. Eleven bulletins are broadcast each weekday: 6 bulletins in the morning during BBC Breakfast, a 4-minute update at 15:00, a 15-minute programme at 13:30, the half-hour main programme at 18:30, a short headline update at 20:00 and a 6-minute update at 22:25. There are also five-minute evening updates at weekends.

Overview

Most of the viewers in these areas formerly received Newsroom South East, though some had been previously receiving South Today. Launched on September 3 2001, it goes out ten times a day from Monday to Friday: 6 bulletins in the morning during BBC Breakfast, a bulletin at 15:25, a 15-minute programme at 13:30, the half-hour main programme at 18:30, and a 5-minute update at 22:25. There are short evening updates at weekends.

The programme can be watched in any part of the UK (and Europe) on digital satellite channel 983 on the BBC UK regional TV on satellite service.

Launched with the single presenter Laurie Mayer, the show was briefly the centre of a minor BBC scandal, after Mayer resigned amid accusations of management bullying. [citeweb|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/kent/3197868.stm|title=Mayer loses BBC sacking case|publisher=BBC News|date=16 October, 2003|accessdate=2008-04-07] Mayer lost his case, but the managers concerned have since moved on.

The current main presenters are Geoff Clark and Beverley Thompson, with weather from Kaddy Lee-Preston, Natalie Booker and Nick Miller. The former national weather forecaster Michael Fish often fills in for holiday absences. Geoff Clark was the anchorman for the South East edition of ITV Meridian's regional news programme "Meridian Tonight" for a number of years before being headhunted by the BBC. Geoff was unhappy with Meridian's plan to broadcast Meridian Tonight (South East) from new studios in Hampshire and was reluctant to relocate.

The editor is Quentin Smith and the Newsgathering Editor is Mark Hayman, who is also Newsgathering Editor for the two radio stations in the region, BBC Radio Kent (based in Tunbridge Wells) and BBC Southern Counties Radio (based in Brighton).The programme is broadcast live from the Tunbridge Wells newsroom (in the same building as BBC Radio Kent), and there are also studios in Brighton, with permanent contribution circuits from Chatham, Hastings and Dover. South East Today also has the use of a dedicated outside broadcast truck.

The team

Currently, the "South East Today" on-air team includes the following:

Main presenters

*Geoff Clark
*Beverley Thompson
*Ceri Perkins
*John Young

Other presenters/reporters

*Natalie Graham (Sussex correspondent)
*Ian Palmer
*Paul Siegert (Political/Transport correspondent)
*Polly Evan
*Rob Smith
*Caroline Feraday

Weather presenters

*Kaddy Lee-Preston (chief presenter)
*Kaye Forster
*Nazaneen Ghaffar
*Nick Miller
*Michael Fish (stand-in)

See also

* BBC News

External links

*

Video clips

* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/england/realmedia/southeasttoday/bb/southeasttoday_16x9_bb.ram Latest programme]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/england/realmedia/southeasttoday/bb/weather_16x9_bb.ram Latest weather bulletin]

References