The outstanding efforts of all those that took part raised donations of over £20 million, which is used to fund projects helping our disadvantaged young people of Great Britain.
Lighting designer Dave Gibson of the BBC was called up once again to light this extravaganza show, and chose seasoned programmer Andy Dobbs as his automated lighting operator. RML have been supplying CIN for the past 8 years working alongside many of our talented UK TV lighting designers. Dave has been the lighting director on Children In Need for the last four years.
There were four separate areas that required lighting within TVC, the lobby area had PixelPar 90s, MAC 500s with the newly designed Pudsey Bear gobo controlled by a Compulite Sparktop desk. The outdoor rig consisted of Boosters, 2k Novalight Moving High Grounds, City Color 1800s and PixelPar 90s, operated by RML's Pauly Bellman on a Sparktop. RML's team was led by Lawrence Robinson and assisted by technicians, Dan Neagle, Lidz Milheiras, and Mark Turner.
TC6 hosted the hospitality area where the VIPs were entertained with a live performance from the Nolans, lighting designer Lee Allen used MAC 600s, Chromaspheres, MAC 500s and MAC 250s with the Pudsey gobo cartwheeling across the dance floor.
Gibson along with his team, Andy Dobbs, David Bishop, Paul Holroyd, Rob Bradley and Jamie Bishop ran the live show from TC1 using VL3500s, VL1000Ts, Pulsar ChromaBanks, PixelLines, MAC 500s, PixelPar 90s, VL500s, ChromaBatten 50s, MAC 600s, 8-Lights, Chrome Impressions, Clay Paky Alpha Beam 300s, Alpha Beam 700s, Vari-Lite VL3000 spots and washes, Nova Flowers, ChromaStrips and Atomic Strobes.
For the second year running RML donated the 35 x 10 m Color Web screen which Pudsey Bear used to send out his charitable message across the front of TVC. Technicians Richard Shout and James Tinsley overseen by RML's Dan Neagle braved the rain along with Rosco of the Unusual Rigging Company to put up the Color Web which was co-ordinated by BBC's Adam Heyhurst. The latest addition to RML's stock, the Martin P3-100 system controller also got its debut with 16 LC panels within the bomb void around the main reception windows.
Dave Gibson had this to say about the event: "It is always a great pleasure to be involved in an event such as this, it is brilliant and challenging to have the chance to light such a wide variety of acts, in such a short space of time . We have approximately 30 mins each per act, to rehearse over the previous two days. I appreciate the flexibility of having so many automated fixtures available along with the variation of video footage from the media servers (Green Hippo Hippotizers). I specified Alpha wash 300 and 700s as new fixtures for this year and was very pleased with the results especially from the new Alpha 700s. All in all a great experience. I would like to thank the whole team involved with lighting this year, you all did a fantastic job well done."
(Claire Beeson)