Living in the moment
A sneaky peek behind the scenes of final preparations for Latest Homes Live, with co-presenters Andrew Bullock and Simone Thorogood
Andrew: The air at The Latest is rife with anticipation right now. Our channel launches in a matter of days (which is a strange feeling to us all) and everyone is working ridiculously hard. It’s tremendously exciting, but I won’t dance around the truth … it’s nerve shredding!
My co-presenter Simone and I have done our final rehearsal now. That’s it! Last chance saloon! The next time we are on that set it will be the real thing. Latest Homes Live is shot ‘as live’, which, if you are unfamiliar with TV jargon, means we film it without stopping, starting or re-doing. It’s as if we were actually being broadcast there and then. This is a good way to make television. It makes things quicker, cleaner, and the crew and cast are more diligent in getting it spot-on.
We did our first rehearsal this week so it is starting to feel very, very real!
I once went to a recording of Friends in LA. On air, Friends was only 22 minutes long, yet the taping took 10 hours! The producers had pizza delivered twice during the day, to feed us and keep the audience energy going. There’s none of that with Latest Homes Live. We will run through our two hour show as it will be watched by you, the viewer. Then, there will be a very brief edit process to tweak the odd slip of the tongue, and we will air that very night. Our show is fresh, current, and very much in the moment.
This also means that the production turn-around is a succinct one. Simone and I have a matter of days to prep, design, script and shoot content, which is then sent on to be edited. I have the utmost respect for those that produce daily shows (This Morning, The Wright Stuff, Loose Women). Maybe one day, if you all tune in and help make our channel a success, we’ll be making Latest Homes Daily or Latest Homes Today!
This week we worked on set, with use of the Tele-caster technology that has been installed into our studio. As you’ll see from the photos, we work with a green screen on our show. We’ve been playing around with backdrops for Latest Homes Live, and you’ll see what the finished product will look like when we go to air next week. Simone and I also visited a couple of homes in Hove and Rottingdean as part of our new Exceptional Homes feature. These homes were fantastic. If I had to describe them each in three words I’d simply say “indoor swimming pool” for one and “giant leather rhinosaurus” for the other. Intrigued? You’d better tune in next week, then …
Simone: Hi readers, and hopefully soon-to-be viewers. I have just joined the wonderful team at Latest Homes Live and it’s exciting to be part, not only of a show, but of a channel that is revving up for launch on 28 August … not long now! We did our first rehearsal this week so it is starting to feel very, very real!
I will be co-presenting and producing with the lovely Andrew Bullock, who has been slaving away to give you a fantastic banquet of property information for you to feast your eyes and ears on. When you think ‘property show’, you tend to think of shows in the vein of Location, Location, Location but this will not be your run of the mill property show. In fact, there has never been anything quite like it; not only is it local and relevant to you, but it provides real time information as to what is out there to buy and rent.
Every week in the studio we will be joined by local estate agents, and will also invite guests onto our hotseat to share their wisdom on anything and everything to do with property. Not only informative, we like to have a playful side that doesn’t take itself too seriously too, and we will soon be introducing a feature that I’m personally very excited about: ‘Flat-Mate or Flat-Hate’. Andrew and I will assist housemates in selecting the final addition to their home, and we will help them pick from a sea of candidates … hopefully no one will pick a flatmate from hell under our watch!
I see myself as the Joe-Anna public, and am genuinely looking to live in the Brighton area myself. Right now I am living in Croydon and am craving the salty sea breeze on my face; I’m quite a romantic. I fell in love with the quirky little streets and the artsy shops and tea rooms, not to mention the beach life that reminds me very much of Venice Beach in LA. Why not have a bit of the LA lifestyle in the UK, along with going for a quaint English tea whilst catching a spot of comedy? There is definitely something special about the area, and I intend to discover it along with you and learn all there is to know – we will all be experts by the end, and will be qualified to set up a city tour!
Watch this space, and see if I pick a place by the end of my rental agreement. Hey, perhaps I’ll make a deal on air and make this part-reality TV? If there are any estate agents who can help me find my dream Brighton home, come on the show and, well, obviously … give me a good deal!
