BBC Look North (North East and Cumbria)

Infobox British television
show_name = BBC Look North (North East and Cumbria)


size =
caption =
format = Regional News
picture_format =
runtime = Main bulletin:
30 minutes
presenter = Carol Malia
(Main anchor)
Jeff Brown
(Sports presenter)
Paul Mooney
Trai Anfield
(Weather presenters)
channel = BBC One
first_aired = 1964
last_aired =
producer = BBC North East and Cumbria
related = "BBC Look North (East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire)"
"BBC Look North (Yorkshire and North Midlands)"
"North East Tonight"

"BBC Look North (North East and Cumbria)" is the BBC's regional television news service for the BBC North East and Cumbria region. The programmes are produced and broadcast from the BBC Broadcasting Centre on Barrack Road in Newcastle upon Tyne with journalists also based at newsrooms in Middlesbrough, Durham, York and Carlisle.

Reception

The programme can be watched in any part of the UK (and Europe) on digital satellite channel 975 on the BBC UK regional TV on satellite service. It broadcasts from the Pontop Pike, Chatton, Bilsdale and Caldbeck transmitters. The Caldbeck transmitter will be one of the first to switch off the analogue signal in June 2009.

History

Prior to the start of "Look North", the BBC television region launched in 1962 with "Home at Six", a weeknight 20-minute news magazine presented by Frank Bough from studios at 54 New Bridge Street in the city centre of Newcastle. After Bough left to join BBC Sport in 1964, the programme was relaunched with a new name and a new presenter - Mike Neville, an actor & continuity announcer for Tyne Tees Television who had been anchor of "North East Newsview", a nightly regional news programme, for only a few months.

Neville soon became a household name and spent the next thirty two years at the BBC in Newcastle, presenting Look North as well as making regular appearances on Nationwide, alongside other members of the Look North team.

For a short period in the late 1980s, Cumbria was switched to the BBC North West region and began receiving North West Tonight instead of Look North, along with a short lunchtime news opt-out. The North East and Cumbria region was reformed after campaigning by viewers in Cumbria that they were being overlooked in favour of news from the more populous areas of the north west, such as Greater Manchester and Merseyside. It was during this time that on 16 January 1988, BBC North East moved to brand new purpose built studios nicknamed 'The Pink Palace' on "Barrack Road" (A189) in Spital Tongues, along with Radio Newcastle.

In 1996, Neville left the BBC after 32 years to re-join Tyne Tees Television to present their flagship evening news programme North East Tonight. Look North underwent major changes with new presenters Carol Malia and John Lawrence (both former reporters for Tyne Tees) introduced to the programme. Malia now presents the main evening programme solo.

Look North was the second English region to switch to the BBC News generic set and opening titles on 18 October 1999. It followed a second generic look across regional news on the 16 September 2002. The current look for the programme was introduced on 16 May 2005 with new titles & graphics introduced on 21 April 2008.

On Air

On weekdays, Look North broadcasts six three-minute opt-outs during BBC Breakfast at 27 and 57 minutes past each hour. A fifteen-minute lunchtime programme follows at 1:30pm before the main half-hour edition at 6:30pm. A short 30-second headlines update during the 8pm BBC News Summary and a seven-minute late update is shown at 10:25pm, following the BBC News at Ten.

Five-minute bulletins of news and sport are broadcast on Saturdays and Sundays, although times vary.

The team

Currently, the "Look North" on-air team includes:

Presenters

*Carol Malia (Main programme)
*Lara Rostron (Main programme stand-in)
*Colin Briggs (Breakfast and lunch bulletins)
*Richard Thomas (Breakfast and lunch bulletins stand-in)
*Sharon Barbour (Weekend bulletins)
*Gerry Jackson (Late bulletins)
*Sharuna Sagar (Late bulletins)
*Stephanie Lloyd (Late bulletins)
*Paddy Macdee (Weekend bulletins)
*Wendy Gibson (Weekend bulletins)Note: Presenters except Malia, can be seen reporting.

Reporters

*Keith Akehurst
*Mark Denten
*Richard Moss (Political correspondent)
*Adrian Pitches
*Chris Stewart
*Michelle Lyons

ports presenters

*Jeff Brown (Main presenter)
*Mark Tulip (Reporter and stand-in presenter)
*Mark Clemet (Reporter)

Weather presenters

*Paul Mooney
*Trai Anfield
*Hannah Bayman

Past presenters

*Mike Neville
*Tom Kilgour
*Simon Willis
*John Lawrence
*George House
*Chris Eakin
*Beverley Thompson
*Steve Sutton
*Tony Baker

ee also

BBC North East & Cumbria's rival ITV regional news programmes:
* ITV Tyne Tees news programme "North East Tonight" which covers news stories from across North East England and North Yorkshire.
* ITV Border news programme "Lookaround" which covers news stories from Dumfries & Galloway, the Scottish Borders (on the western side), Cumbria and the Isle of Man.

External links

*bbc.co.uk|id=looknorthnecumbria|title=BBC "Look North" from North East and Cumbria
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/england/realmedia/looknorthnecumbria/bb/looknorth_16x9_bb.ram Latest programme]