B.B.C.

Radio Record, Volume VIII, Issue 17, 2 November 1934, Page 16

B.B.C.

A Landmark ‘ In Portland Place, London

rT’ was early in 1932 that the British Broadcasting Corporation moved from the premises it had occupied for nine years. at Savoy Hilldescribed as "very pleasant offices, some of them enjoying a leafy outlook over the Em- _ bankment Gardens across the river toward Waterloo Bridge"-to the "cold dignity" of Portland Place. Since then the classical beauty of the new B.B.C. building has become known to millions of Londoners and thousands of New Zealanders who have journeyed England-wards to énjoy a summer that comes, as we colonials believe, at the wrong time of the year. ; In some European countries the broadcasting authorities have chosen sites for their main studios some distance from the centres of the cities. For instance, the German broadcasting headquarters. the Rundfunkhaus, is four miles from the heart of Berlin. and, because of the lower cost of the site, is built on a very different plan from the B.B.C. premises. Broadcasting House is in the centre of London-Oxford and Regent Streets are but a few yards away, and both Regent’s Park and Hyde Park within a few minutes’ walk-and it is very conveniently situated for those people whose services are needed. . The studios being built in Auckland will resemble the B.B.C.’s in many ways, although the scale, of course, is vastly different. Neither the studio building in Auckland nor the "‘studio tower" in London has any vertical steelwork, as that would increase the likelihood

of sound-leakage from one studio to another. Broadcasting House has 12 stories-three be-_ low the street level and nine above-and the studios are all grouped in a central tower which is surrounded by, but structurally independent of, the administrative offices. The architect, in adopting this plan, had two ideas in mind: the offices serve to insulate the studios against street noises, while the administrative staff has

the benefit of daylight and natural ventilation. The studio tower is a completely closed box which is subdivided into 22 studios, the largest of which is the concert hall, 106ft. by 42ft. by 31ft. high, giving a volume of 125,000 cubic feet and the ability to seat an audience of 750. Correspondence has appeared in the English papers (Englishmen have the habit just as badly as New Zealanders) asking why, when it is seldom that more than two studios are in use simultaneously, this large number of studios is necessary. The explanation is that to a large extent studios liave to be matched.to particular types of programmes for reasons of acoustics and environment. F urthermorey the tendency to thoroughly rehearse a programme is growing, and it is now calculated that the rehearsal time is about four times greater than the transmission time. A great deal of attention has been paid to the thorough ventilation of these studios, which are destined never to see the light of day. Here again Auckland has- followed in London’s footsteps, for the plants in both broadcasting buildings are very similar. Broadcasting House has an air-conditioning -plant in the basement which draws in the air, washes it, heats it, disinfects it and sends it through the studios above. Suction fans extract the vitiated air, and it is estimated that the atmosphere is completely changed every nine minutes. : The walls-of most of the studios have been covered with building board, a wood-pulp material, about half an inch thick, which has to be stuck to the walls very ~~

rigidly. Any form of painting on this board ruins its acoustic properties, but, as its natural colour is a pleasant biscuit shade, the architect has not been hampered .in his creation of artistic studios. Between many of the studios are thick brick walls which have been packed with pumice concrete and eel-grass. . The vital nerve centre of the building is the control room, which is equipped with six transmission control positions, of which, normally, three are in use-one for the National programme, one for the Regional programme and one for the Empire programme. Facilities are also provided for distributing any programme throughout Broadcasting House, either "from the output on a wireless check receiver or from the chain of transmission. Beside each of the principal studios is.a listening room, intended for the use of a programme producer and insulated from the studio. Double glass windows give the producer a clear view of the studio. These listening rooms are provided with

apparatus which controls the microphone points in the studios. This enables the output .of the different microphones in the studio to be mixed, thus maintaining the balance between artist and accompanist. Broadcasting. House also has _ several listening halls, where programmes may be listened to under ideal conditions. . The B.B.C.’s system of broadcasting plays-the multi-studio technique, as it is sometimes called-is ‘worth a passing note, When an ambitious play is being broadcast, a play which requires a large number of principals, a big chorus, an orchestra and so on, it is jmpracticable to have all the component parts of the play concentrated. in one studio, Quite apart from the difficulty of getting the correct. balance between the parts making up the performance, the psychological effect on the artists themselves would make it inadvisable to crowd them all into one studio. Here the dramatic control panel is made use of. This panel controls the volume of the play and has cue keys so that it is possible for the various members performing in the play to be in different studios. The output from each studio amplifier is brought to.a volume control potentiometer on the dramatic control panel, and it is possible for, say, an effects noise or incidental music to be started some seconds before its introduction in the play and then be gradually mixed at any required volume into the whole production, The dramatic ntrol panel is capable of mixing the outputs of 11 into one composite whole. In recent years the use of records has formed an increasingly useful tool in the hands of the builders of British programmes, and is exploited in two ways. The first of these is the inclusion in programmes of gramophone records, such as those sold to the public by the various: recotd manufacturers. This includes the broadcasting of complete works, such as operas and symphonies, without a break in changing from one record to another. ‘Apart from ordinary record programmes, the B.B.C, is making increasing use of special records of its own programmes, These are employed for the reproduction of programme items which occur at times | ‘when the majority of listeners are away from their homes, as, for example, running commentaries of sporting events. They are also used for the building up of retrospect programmes on such occasions as New Year’s Eve. .With the advent of the Empire Service, the re-

cording of B,B.C, programmes for re-transmission to the Empire at other times of the day has proved a great asset. For example, it will be realised that programmes which are intended to be received at a convenient listening hour in, say, Canada have to be radiated in the eariy hours of the morning on the following day. For recording its own programmes the B.B.C. is faced with somewhat different problems from those encountered by the gramophone companies. Among the desirable features of a broadcasting organisation’s recording system, in addition to good quality reproduction, are the ability to play back a record as soon as possible after it'is made, the minimum.cost per minute of recording, the longest possible playing time without a break and ease of storage of completed records, . The B.B.C. has made extensive use of a steel tape-recordinzg system. This system employs a fine steel tape, 3 m.m. wide, which runs past the pole pieces of recording electro magnets or "heads." ‘The programme currents are fed through the windings of these heads and impress a magnetic record on the tape as it runs past, the tape being unrolled and re-rolled on two spools in much the same way as a cinema film, Modern machines of this type carry sufficient tape for a continuous recording of about 25 minutes, the tape running at a speed of approximately one metre per second, Though the tape is expensive to purchase, this system of recording has the advantage of enabling the magnetic record of a pro-' gramme to be removed from the tape by re-magnetisa-tion, so that the tape can be used repeatedly. In addition to the steel tape recording system, the B,B.C. uses a form of disc recording, This differs somewhat from gramophone recording practice, in that the record is not cut on soft wax but on a material sprayed on to a metal base. This coating, after having been cut by the recording head, is sufficiently hard to allow an immediate play-hack, and no lengthy processing has to be done unless copies are required, Broadcasting House has its own restaurant, too, -and furnished in the modern and simple style that characterises the fittings throughout the whole building. Here youthful typistes rub shoulders with world-famous radio stars, and unassuming technicians eat. pies and drink coffee at the next table to George Robey or Florence Desmond.