The 5 Live Must Watch blog Feed

Twitter Q & A with Test Match Special’s producer

2013-07-09T18:01:30+00:00

With just one day to go ahead of the Ashes, Test Match Special producer Adam Mountford took to Twitter to answer your questions about the programme using #AskTMS. Here is a selection of his responses.

You can hear Test Match Special throughout the Ashes on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra and via the BBC iPlayer Radio app.

How do you decide the commentary rota for the day's play? - @gilesjoiner
I try and mix a variety of different voices and personalities and make sure commentators get to work with a range of summarisers.

Why do you not have a woman as part of your commentary team? - @joannevickers
Alison Mitchell is a regular part of the commentary team having worked on World Cups, ODI's and ICC events hopefully Alison will get the chance to commentate on a Test match soon. She is a very important part of the TMS team.

Who would you really like to get on TMS, and who gives you the biggest headache? - @mjkyorkshire
Aggers is really keen to get Sir Alex Ferguson on this summer. Biggest headache, not a person, but the weather!

How would you feel if there was another "leg over" incident on your watch? - @athena_42
I would love it. You may occasionally hear me laughing in the background. Good job I'm not on air as I'd corpse all the time.

As a producer, what time do you have to arrive at the ground on the morning of a test and when can you leave? - @PeterACollins
I normally arrive around 8am. I like to be first in the box as it’s quiet before Geoffrey arrives. When I work @bbctms abroad I also engineer the programme so I often have to get to ground hours before to get lines working.

Do you have to restrict the number of visitors to the box - would have thought you would be inundated with requests? Who polices it - @niallodonn
It is lovely to have visitors - but we are doing a live programme so obviously the priority is what goes on air.

Do your guests have to perform a test before a first broadcast to see if they are suitable for the radio? - @electricralph
No not a test, we might ask around to check if a potential guest is a confident talker and really likes cricket.

Has the ashes always been so important to the public or has it heightened since 05? -@stuartjnelson
I think 2005 really lifted the Ashes to new heights - in some ways it is a shame it overshadows other really good series.

Which ground does the best luncheon for the press folk? - @DrDublin1
I don't always get lunch as I produce our interval programmes. But these days I think Edgbaston is best.

Really enjoyed the Michael Palin as a guest commentator for 1 over, any chance of making the 'guest' a regular slot? - @rogerk11
It is a fun idea. The only issue is if a really vital moment took place when a guest is commentating. But we may try it again!

What do you think about the change in balance between ex-pros as commentators vs. genuine journalists (Bloefeld, CMJ etc.) - @jimboclack
I think it's really important we have a mix of journalists and ex-pros. For this Test we have 3 professional broadcasters.

Has an Eng sub-fielder i.e Gary Pratt ever gone on to gain an Eng cap in later years or is sub the pinnacle? - @HowarthRob
Quite a few times. Andrew Flintoff certainly did. He was talking about it the other day.

Does @TMSscorer use a computer to find all his amazing statistics? - @moorhead_mark
Yes these days scorers like @tmsscorer use computers to help find stats. But he scores with a pen and paper.

What is the hardest part of the job and what is the best? - @gilesjoiner
Hardest is second guessing weather. Best I get to listen to @bbctms all day at Cricket matches with a constant supply of cake.

Adam do the team use naked eye or binoculars? - @niallodonn
Naked eye with occasional binoculars for fielders in the deep or for spotting famous faces in the crowd.

Do you get much work as an Angus Fraser lookalike? - @PantherDarts
I am not nearly grumpy enough to be like Gus.

Have you ever seen a mermaid? - @SamuelAmadeus
No but I have seen Shane Warne bowl a Flipper.

Do you know the reason why Billy isn't playing his trumpet? Can you interview @TrentBridge on air to explain? - @Rich_for_peru
Trent Bridge have a "no musical instrument” policy. But we will follow up the story on the programme.

How much planning do you do for rain delays? They are often better to listen to than when there is cricket - @WRMetcalfe
If I know we're going to get lots of rain then I try to plan some material/subject areas. But some of our best chat is organic.

Do you think there is a chance England could win 5-0 if the British weather holds out?! - @thealexsims
Personally I can't see that. England are certainly favourites but I think it might be a little tighter than some think.

How much equipment do you need to take to each ground for a TMS broadcast? - @goose521
In the UK we have engineers to help so I only take a small amount. Abroad I carry all equipment in 2 large suitcases.

What is the oddest commentary position tms has broadcast from? - @moorhead_mark
Famously the Old Fort in Galle in Sri Lanka when we were locked out of the ground.

Are new commentators/pundits ever briefed on the TMS "way" or do you let them do it their way? - @_SmartUK
It is really important that people are allowed to "be themselves" on air. But I will just make sure they know the basics.

Is there an equivalent 'tinny' record for a shift in the commentary box? Am guessing @MichaelVaughan can put it away! - @RichyLomas
It may surprise you, but our team don't drink on duty. Just imagine what it might sound like if they did!

Would you ever consider allowing the box to be filmed for viewers? Perhaps a red button feature? - @JamesGW144
Maybe, but sometimes the picture of the TMS box in your head may be more romantic than the reality!

You can hear Test Match Special throughout the Ashes on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra, Radio 4 LW and via the BBC iPlayer Radio app.

Test Match Special returns for summer 2013

2013-05-14T13:20:37+00:00

Some people have told me that I have one of the best jobs in the world as the producer of Test Match Special.

It is true that I get to sit at international cricket matches, listening to my favourite radio programme with an almost constant supply of cake!

But then again I do also have to work with Geoffrey Boycott.

However, there is no doubt that I feel especially fortunate this summer with such a potentially thrilling six months of cricket ahead.

Later in the summer we of course have England’s defence of The Ashes so look out for details of our exciting coverage across the BBC.

There is also the Women’s Ashes played for the first time over both Test and limited overs games, and TMS will have coverage of all matches.

Before that the eight best men’s teams in the world will gather in Cardiff, London and Birmingham for the ICC Champions Trophy next month.

TMS will have commentary of ALL fifteen matches in the tournament, which includes mouth-watering ties like India v Pakistan and the first meeting of the summer of England and Australia.

But the international season starts with the visit of New Zealand who are determined not to labelled as merely an aperitif for what is to follow.

There is plenty of extra spice to the Kiwi tour after they enjoyed the better of their home Test series against England.

We had a remarkable number of listeners who stayed up through the night gripped by the drama as messrs Bell, Broad and Prior somehow kept New Zealand’s bowlers out to force a famous draw in Auckland.

Hands up how many of you leaped out of your beds when Monty Panesar dived to make his ground amid unbearable tension at Eden Park?

The Test Match Special team on duty at Lord’s this week will be led by Jonathan Agnew with Henry Blofeld, Ed Smith and Bryan Waddle sharing commentary duties.

Our expert summarisers will be Michael Vaughan, Phil Tufnell, Geoff Boycott and the former New Zealand captain Jeremy Coney. TMS favourites Simon Mann and Vic Marks will be on duty later in the summer.

Although there is plenty of excitement ahead of the summer there is a rather bittersweet feeling in the TMS box as this is our first home series since the death of our much loved colleague Christopher Martin-Jenkins.

He might have been a nightmare to produce at times with his eccentric time-keeping and technophobia, but I dearly wish we could hear CMJ’s rapid steps and crash through the commentary box door again as he realised he was late for yet another spell.

It is a symbol of his importance to the game that the beautiful memorial service held at St Paul’s Cathedral last month was massively oversubscribed.

The service was a perfect tribute to CMJ in every way, except that it began and ended on time. We will play some excerpts from the memorial on Test Match Special this week.

Our first View from the Boundary guest of the summer will be comedian Andy Parsons of Mock the Week fame, we’ll review the ECB Player of the Year awards, hear a special interview with Stuart Broad and find out why a Russian chess grandmaster is turning up at the home of cricket.

There is no excuse for missing a moment of TMS this summer with our coverage on 5 Live Sports Extra, Radio 4 Long wave, online Worldwide and now via the BBC Radio iPlayer App. So you can literally take Geoffrey Boycott with you this summer…should you wish.

Plus Aggers and Boycs wll round off each day with the Test Match Special Podcast.

Anyway – I would love to tell you more, but I have lots of very important things to get ready before the Test starts…Now where did I put that cake knife?

Adam Mountford is producer of Test Match Special. The programme returns on Thursday 16 May at 10.45am for the 1st Test between England and New Zealand.

5 live Sport's rights deals: continuing to bring sport to life on the radio

2013-04-18T10:59:13+00:00

We sometimes say that 5 live is "the home of live sport." So what does that actually mean?

Well, we pride ourselves on covering a wide range of sports live - and from inside the venue. In fact, we aim to get as close to the action as possible. You might have heard Iain Carter and John Murray whispering while commentating out on the course at Augusta last weekend to avoid distracting the players during The Masters (yes, they are that close!).

We feel this kind of access is essential to capture the true drama of an event and to report on all the stories which seem to inevitably develop around sport.

However, just like television, you have to acquire rights to provide radio commentary from inside a stadium or from the course. These rights can sometimes be hotly contested in a competitive market place.

As such, we were pleased recently to extend our current Premier League commentary rights packages for a further three years from the start of next season. We have four out of the seven packages available - Saturday lunchtime kick-offs, first choice at Saturday 3pm, Sunday 4pm kick-offs, plus Monday and Tuesday night matches.

When combined with our coverage of the SPL, the Champions League, Europa League, FA Cup, Football League and international football, we think it makes a pretty compelling proposition for our football-following listeners. That's not to mention our coverage of the World Cup in Brazil coming up next year.

We are also committed to covering a wide range of sports - not just football - and this summer we are particularly excited by the prospect of a home Ashes series on Test Match Special on 5 live Sports Extra. Our England cricket commentary deal with the ECB lasts until 2019 so plenty more from Aggers and the team for a few years yet!

So how do we decide which rights to acquire and what sporting event we should cover on 5 live? To be honest, it's fairly simple: we choose what we think is most editorially compelling for the audience. We will use audience research and listening data to try to inform these decisions too. Of course not everyone will agree with our choices but they are always taken in good faith and with the audience in the forefront of our thinking.

I understand some listeners have asked why we haven't covered some of the recent Champions League matches not involving British sides. This has not been a question of rights so much, more an editorial decision based on the potential cost of coverage and the level of audience interest. We will be commentating on the Champions League final at Wembley and possibly the second leg of one or both of the semi-finals.

We do also have a responsibility to cover those other sports which perhaps don't hit the mainstream agenda as much as football and cricket - and we take that responsibility very seriously. So, expect to hear a lot more Olympic, Paralympic and women's sport over the coming months on 5 live and 5 live Sports Extra.

Ultimately, everyone at BBC Radio Sport loves sport and we all feel hugely privileged to provide what we hope is one of the best live sport services around. I am also lucky to manage some of the best broadcasters in the business who quite simply bring sport to life on the radio.

For a full list of upcoming 5 live commentaries visit our commentaries page.