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03/09/07 - SMOOTH OPS NEW 'RED BUTTON' COMMISSIONSSmooth Operations is pleased to announce its latest foray into the digital world. In the summer of 2007 we successfully produced film coverage of 2 live concerts which were made available on the BBC's red button facility. As part of the Mark Radcliffe and Stuart Maconie Show on BBC Radio 2 we presented Arcade Fire live at Maida Vale and KT Tunstall's new album launch gig from the historic Fruitmarket in Glasgow. Managing Director John Leonard said, "This is a very important step forward for Smooth Operations. We're committed to embracing every area of digital technology and were delighted to be able to bring our high production standards to capture the performances of such exciting new artists." The videos of both performances are still available on the BBC Radio 2 website Arcade Fire and KT Tunstall. 16/07/07 - SMOOTH OPS AT LIVE EARTH FOR MICROSOFT
Our team produced an extensive series of artist interviews for MSN, recorded backstage at the London concert in Wembley Stadium. Presenter June Sarpong spoke to more than 25 acts including Genesis, Beastie Boys, Duran Duran and Metallica. The interviews were sent via satellite to MSN's Seattle offices, before appearing on the network's website. Producers John Leonard and Andy Batten-Foster also provided Microsoft with general venue footage and a film about environmental issues affecting London, featuring the city's mayor Ken Livingstone. By the Monday following the event (9 July), MSN had served more than 30 million live and on-demand streams. The UK Live Earth show was the most viewed event during the live coverage, and MSN expected to serve millions more users with on-demand streams of the concert and the celebrity interviews provided by Smooth Operations. Customer feedback collected by MSN praised the website's deep content experience and quality programming, which drove a 'tremendous' amount of users to make the Live Earth pledge. More than 15 million streams were served during the course of MSN's
live coverage, making Live Earth one of the most watched events
in internet history. 13/07/07 - FOR HE'S A JOLLY GOOD FELLOW!
Fellowship is 'the highest honour the Radio Academy can confer on a member of the industry, awarded to recognise individuals who have made outstanding contributions'. The presentation was made by BBC R2 Controller and Radio Academy Deputy Chair Lesley Douglas. In her presentation speech, Ms Douglas praised John's tenacity, attention to detail and creativity as a programme maker. She also noted John's "staggering range" of recent output, including the Radio 2 Folk Awards, the award-winning 2006 Radio Ballads, the Radcliffe & Maconie Show, and Russell Brand's first forays on to Radio 2. John said: "I was staggered and touched to be made a Fellow of the Academy. It was a complete and wonderful surprise." 28/06/07 - SMOOTH OPERATIONS DOWNLOADED
Station Manager Viv Atkinson hand-picked a team of great new radio talent (producers, reporters and presenters) who, with their encyclopedic knowledge, boundless enthusiasm and wealth of creativity, delivered a slick, fresh and extremely interactive station that became an integral part of the festival experience. Guests in the Download Radio studio included: Papa Roach, Dragonforce, Motörhead's Fast Eddie Clarke, Aiden, Turisas, Reuben, Porcupine Tree, Reel Big Fish and Orange Goblin. On Saturday night Smooth Ops also broadcasted Bruce Dickinson's 6 Music Rock Show live from the site. While fans clamored outside to catch a glimpse of the rock god through the window, famous friends scrambled to get through the door to meet the man himself, including Stone Sour's Corey Taylor, Machine Head's Rob Flynn and Slayer's Kerry King. 6 Music head Ric Blaxhill said: "With Bruce we knew that we
would have a good, busy and full-on network show, but it was entering
into new pastures with the [on-site station]. And what lovely pastures
they were! Great sounding radio station, great new presenters and
producers, lots of interaction and great music for the event. It
couldn't have sounded that good without a lot of work behind it."
01/04/07 - SMOOTH OPERATIONS WINS TWO GOLDS AT SONY AWARDS
Photographs: David Fisher/Rex Features 28/03/07 - FOUR SONY NOMINATIONS FOR SMOOTH OPERATIONS
Presenter Mark Radcliffe picked up two nominations - Best Music Programme and Music Radio Personality Of The Year - for his 10.30pm to midnight weekday music and chat show, broadcast from the BBC’s Manchester base. Two programmes made for the six-part Radio Ballads social history documentary series broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in 2006 collected a nomination each. The Song of Steel, about the decline of the steel industry in Sheffield, was shortlisted in The Feature Award, while Thirty Years of Conflict, examining three decades of conflict in Northern Ireland, was nominated in the Community Award category. Both programmes featured specially-commissioned songs written from the life stories of the interviewees. The winners in each category will be announced on Monday 30th April in London. 28/03/07 - NEW SHOW FOR NICK BARRACLOUGH
Nick's been showcasing country music on the airwaves since 1992, including BBC Radio 2's annual coverage of the glittering Country Music Awards from Nashville. In that time he was honoured with an International Broadcaster award for his dedication to the support and promotion of the genre. Among the highlights of his last fifteen years at Radio 2 have been exclusive interviews with Dolly Parton, Van Morrison, Garth Brooks, Linda Ronstadt and, a particular hero, Dwight Yoakam. "I've had a wonderful time with Radio 2 over the years and I've been lucky enough to meet and mingle with real legends of country music," says Nick. "Now it's time for a new challenge and I'm delighted to be part of the new team at smooth radio and to be able to spread myself across three hours. I mean, what a joy!" Nick brings his wit and warmth to Smooth Radio beginning on Sunday April 1st, showcasing the very best new releases, plenty of classics and interviews with the biggest stars. It's a show you just won't hear anywhere else! Visit Nick's Smooth Radio showpage. 28/03/07 - RADCLIFFE AND MACONIE TEAM UP ON RADIO 2
Featuring the best music, along with live sessions both in and
out of the studio, the show will reflect events such as the Cambridge
Folk Festival, the Edinburgh Fringe, the UK Music Hall Of Fame,
the Mercury Music Award and the BBC Jazz Awards. Mark and Stuart
will also have special guests, and review music, film and TV. Like Mark Radcliffe's previous Radio 2 show, the programme will be produced by Julia Allen and John Leonard. John says: "Mark and Stuart make a great partnership. They
bring bucketfuls of knowledge, wit and enthusiasm to everything
they do. We're very excited about this new programme and the opportunities
it will create for making fantastic radio." |
Smooth
Operations played a key part in MSN's hugely successful online coverage
of Al Gore's 
The
Radio Ballad The Song of Steel, about the decline of the
steel industry in Sheffield, was awarded Gold in The Feature Award
while Thirty Years of Conflict, a Radio Ballad examining
three decades of conflict in Northern Ireland, was awarded Bronze
in the Community Award category. The Radio Ballads series was produced
by John Leonard with John Tams as Musical Director, seen here with
award presenter Joan Bakewell CBE.
