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Bob’s Question

Published 15th February 2012

Radio

Over a year and a half after I read this article on radio, I keep coming back to it:

“Q: Why should I listen to your radio station?

After all, I have an iPod with more than 10,000 tunes that collectively form the soundtrack of my life. I have more music on my computer. I can listen to endless computer-generated combinations – better mix, better variety – that can surprise me and amuse me between now and whenever I lose my interest, my sanity, my life. My iPod can do all that; my computer can do it too.

So why should I listen to your radio station?

After all, I can listen to online stations that programme the music I like (70s retro … electronica … ambient), and many of these play without interruption, without call-letters, without commercials, without an intervening human presence.

So why should I listen to our radio station in this brave new world of choice and lifestyle-customisation and narrowcasting?

And yet listen I do. I need radio.”

Give the whole thing a read. It sums up most of my thoughts about what radio should be doing… and why so many stations leave me cold.

Underestimating Your Audience

Published 4th February 2012

TV Comedy

So, the BBC have announced Laugh Track, a talent contest to find “the next big Studio Sitcom”. OK, so maybe I’m not so keen on the contest side of things – and alarm bells ring in my head when I read things like “we’re looking for writers that reflect modern Britain” – but hey, it’s still pleasing to see the BBC obviously care about audience sitcom, after some wobbly moments a few years ago. And to go with it, we have this blog post, giving some “handy” hints on how to write your script.

Let’s swiftly move past some of the questionable things in that article – a “comedy sitcom”, eh? – and get to the key section:

“In non-studio comedy series you can do strange, subtle, unusual things – think The Office, Peep Show, The Thick of It, Flight of the Conchords. In studio sitcoms, you have to make the people in the room laugh – out loud, and preferably as often as possible.”

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Red Dwarf X Set Reports Roundup

Published 30th January 2012

TV Comedy

Last Friday saw the last Red Dwarf X audience recording. And last Saturday saw the last Red Dwarf X Ganymede & Titan audience recording report. I’ve been part of the site since 2003, and whilst I don’t like to blow my own trumpet, as Alex Picton-Dinch would say, I do think these are some of the best things we’ve ever published, and worth a link here. If only because it’s fairly difficult to make them boring.

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# Don’t Ever Let a Happy Day Pass You By…

Published 29th January 2012

Jingles

Another day, another entry in our Ken R jingle sampler series – and this time, we’re back to original PAMS jingles, all recorded between 1960 and 1977:

The Livin’ End (98MB ZIP, password: kenr)

As usual, this compilation has loads of great stuff – including some nice country jingles which often seem to get looked over when talking about the history of PAMS, and some extremely amusing session excerpts which pile on the nonsense noises with each take. But my favourite of the batch here is simply known as the WTVY (FM) Happy Day Song.

[mejsaudio src=”https://dirtyfeed.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/WTVY-FM.mp3″]

The perfect way to start your day.

Jingle compilation by Ken R. Deutsch. PAMS material © PAMS Productions, Inc. of Dallas.

GOLD “Summer” Promo

Published 21st January 2012

TV Presentation

Here’s a slightly bizarre promo running on GOLD at the moment, which is a good example of how to take an interesting idea and do it in the trademark GOLD irritating way:

I’m certainly not posting this for its quality, but I thought it was worth mentioning just because it’s quite rare for television itself talks about scheduling and transmission to the general public, especially in promos and the like. Feels very odd. Could have been great in the right hands.

Anyway, transmission is more exciting than scheduling, natch.

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# Wonderful Town, Wonderful People…

Published 15th January 2012

Jingles

As we return after a Christmas break to our Ken R. jingle sampler series, we have something slightly different than the last three. The previous samplers were all material from PAMS; this one takes us on a trip around other jingle production houses – material from Pepper Tanner, Heller, and Sande & Greene to name but three. A shame perhaps that there isn’t more context included, but this is still 55 minutes of awesomeness.

Not PAMS Sampler (85MB ZIP, password: kenr)

As for my favourites, it isn’t entire tracks this time, but just two jingles I want to single out. Firstly, Wonderful Town, Wonderful People from Richard Ullman and Associates – I thought this was a PAMS jingle for years, and I think it gives PAMS’s My Home Town a run for its money:

[mejsaudio src=”https://dirtyfeed.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/littleton.mp3″]

And secondly, from Heller – well, one of the most bizarre radio jingles I think I’ve ever heard…

[mejsaudio src=”https://dirtyfeed.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/wizard100.mp3″]

Jingle compilation by Ken R. Deutsch.

Best Ad Placement Ever

Published 12th January 2012

Adverts

From Channel 4 tonight, around 18:45 (via @bohaynowell):

Someone very clever is working in Aldi’s marketing department.

Question: exactly how much will this kind of thing piss off Kellogg’s? Their no doubt relatively expensive slot is completely undermined…

UPDATE (18/01/12): Well done How-Do, for doing what I failed to do and getting proper quotes from McCann (Aldi’s advertising agency), and Kellogg’s. Apparently all a big coincidence. Ah well.

And That’s Blockbusters

Published 7th January 2012

TV Gameshows / TV Presentation

As I slag off Challenge when they do something wrong, it seems only fair to congratulate them when they do something right. With the sad death of Bob Holness yesterday, Challenge made a point of not only updating their EPG, but also recording some new links; genuinely impressive for a channel which doesn’t have live continuity. Take a look below – and make a note of listening to Bob’s intro for the female contestant, where he makes a hilariously inappropriate joke, but gets away with it because he was brilliant:

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