BBC2 Filming Enquiry

Outreach & Events
1

Please find below received by email.
If interested, reply here or to me via DM (@coneconecone on Telegram too)

Hello,

I hope you are keeping well! I’m a producer for a Ricochet, a TV company that makes many shows including the Repair Shop, The Bidding Room, Food Unwrapped and Jay’s Yorkshire Workshop.

I am contacting you as we are putting together a pitch together for the BBC for a second series of Jay’s Workshop. We would like to take the next series of the show to a different part of the country and to tell a new set of stories so are looking for a new location to film the show in. We’re interested in the North East and in particular Manchester and the surrounding areas which is underrepresented on the BBC.

The show was recently on BBC2 primetime - it’s a positive and uplifting show where Jay Blades assembled a group of amateur woodwork enthusiasts from Yorkshire, and led by some of the top experts in the country, they made bespoke items for deserving people from the local area. For example, they made a rocking horse for a couple who have fostered 130 children, a sideboard for a young man who gave half his liver to a complete stranger; a chair for a flood warden who goes above and beyond; a gaming chair for a teenager who saved his dad’s life; and an arbour for a group of care home workers who left their own families and moved into the care home during the first lockdown to prevent COVID infections. We also followed the stories of the makers as they grew in confidence and skills over the series, and were all there for a reason. The show is still up on iPlayer if you’d like to take a look:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/m000yxk7/jays-yorkshire-workshop

2

After a meeting with the producer, I received this summary of that meeting.
After which sent off site plan and pictures of the space as of yesterday evening.

I made it clear that filming should not close the space in it’s entirety however we would have to accept a reduced capacity during filming to accommodate staff and and equipment.

And that recruitment for the show must include the talented membership of the space. However a remark on the final casting decision is with the BBC -_-

It was mentioned in the meeting that they anchor price of 500 per day for a empty barn on last season’s was paid for. the biggest problem with that site was the lack of three-phase and the happy remarks that we have access to three phase and what problems that would solve

Subject: Re: Regarding your interest in hackspace Manchester

Hi Alex,

It was great chatting to you earlier so thank you for your time, and apologies for not getting this information to you sooner, I had to grab some lunch after our call as I had another zoom. Before I knew it the clock said 5PM.

As I mentioned here is some additional info for and the board:

We don’t have a set schedule yet as we need to find a location and then match the dates up with the availability of Jay Blades our presenter but it’s looking likely that it would be the last two weeks of Apil and the month of May (looking approx. w/c 18th April until w/c 30th May). This breaks down into…

1.5 weeks for set up which we call Rig Week

4 weeks of primary filming for the show

0.5 weeks for our pack down

In terms of the show and us using local people, our show it open to all and it would most certainly be open to anyone who is a part of or connected to Hackspace. We just couldn’t guarantee they are in the show. Everyone goes through the same casting process and ultimately it’s down to the BBC who makes the show and a number of factors determine this including things like skill level, diversity, background story and how we balance out the show to get the best mix of these and more.

In regards to money and budget, we would certainly pay for the hire of the venue in the forms of a location fee. What that fee is I cannot say right now, it would depend on many different things like how much space or facilities we use, what machinery if any we would hire from you, what compensation is fair for a reduced running of the space etc. All of these are up for discussion and then hopefully a deal that all parties are happy with would be agreed upon. In essence we aren’t expecting something for nothing and we have budget for the hire of the location.

If you or the board have any other questions please don’t hesitate to contact me at all and I will do my best to answer, otherwise I will take them to my boss next week.

Also as we spoke about on the phone if you could send over any photos, videos and floorplans / dimensions of the space that would be greatly appreciated.

Speak soon,

Shane

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Ok, sounds fair, but it needs to be established if the “show” is about “us”, or, if it is solely being used as a location for them, their cast, their subject matter, and the format being produced.

Are they going to attempt to film another “Jay’s Workshop”, whereby “Jay” decides on what gets made, brings other people in to use our equipment, or, if it is about “HacMan” and our people and what we do.

Lastly, from me, they’ve specified a requirement for 3 phase power, whilst we have a 3ph supply into the space, we do not have a usable 3ph connection anywhere, so what has been suggested to them, and what do they need specifically in terms of 3ph.