I Am On Television
Discussion
20+ years ago I was on 'Hot Summer Down Under'. Camera crew followed the life of a group of back packers living in Kings Cross Sydney. I was friends with the group so I always made an appearance on screen when the beers were flowing..Which was often; and always messy.
I got quite a lot of screen time considering...Must've been my drunken magnetism.
I got quite a lot of screen time considering...Must've been my drunken magnetism.
When the recently deceased Magenta DeVine presented Rough Guide to Ibiza or similar, live from Cafe Mambo in 1998, I was sat at the table behind her, directly facing the camera.
The staff were more concerned about getting in shot and looking good than prioritising food orders, so after an hour when a lukewarm plate of something roughly resembling food arrived, we were not impressed. We were about 4 drinks in by this point, and just as she went to a live piece to camera, me and the girl I was with just walked out.
A free, but bad meal for appearing on TV...
The staff were more concerned about getting in shot and looking good than prioritising food orders, so after an hour when a lukewarm plate of something roughly resembling food arrived, we were not impressed. We were about 4 drinks in by this point, and just as she went to a live piece to camera, me and the girl I was with just walked out.
A free, but bad meal for appearing on TV...
alorotom said:
I was a regular in byker grove in the 90s and it paid well for a child / teenager (speaking role, not an extra) - checking back it was a nominal £280 per episode
Mentioned this thread to a friend who mentioned something else I was in/on which I had totally blanked from my memory. I was on the original Ibiza Uncovered series on Sky1 back in the late 90s - no pay, but free VIP entry to a few of the top (at the time) nightclub nights (Manumission @ Privildege, Cream @ Amnesia, Carry-on at Space, Foam @ Eden and Es Paradis) that was an amazing summer. I have the VHS recordings from Sky1 still - I should get them transferred to digital really.I was on Driven on Channel 4 in late 90s/early 2000s, an episode with the three-way shootout between the Puma, the Saxo and (I think) the Lupo GTI. It was one of those segments where they invite a bunch of owners of each car on and ask them to give their thoughts on each model. I remember thinking just how little Penny Mallory was.
TIGA84 said:
h0b0 said:
I was on Kitchen nightmares years ago. We knew there would be filming but they tried to hide what for. We had to sign away our likeness and shadows before being directed to the restaurant. We thought we had landed the “after” meal because it was the 3rd filming session. Unfortunately, it was still the before. They still expected me to pay for the meal even though we had uncooked prawns and cooked pubes. I refused but was going to pay for the alcohol but they told me I did not have to. Considering we tried to drink them dry I’d guess we had $100 per person so around $400 to be on the show. After we finished we went across the road to get some food because my wife couldn’t eat the raw prawns.
The restaurant closed down after filming so not entirely successful turnaround. For those who watched, it was “The Black Pearl” in NYC and I was the bloke they subtitles. It was either my accent or the booze that made me unintelligible to their ears.
I remember that one, run by 3 blokes, one being a total dThe restaurant closed down after filming so not entirely successful turnaround. For those who watched, it was “The Black Pearl” in NYC and I was the bloke they subtitles. It was either my accent or the booze that made me unintelligible to their ears.
head and thinking he was some kind of Mafia boss?The experience was odd from the outset. We were sat away from the normal area which aroused my suspicion. Later on I saw my photo attached to a camera so I spoke to the camera man and he said we had been identified as potentially interesting people. Possibly because of the accent but explained why we were sat away from others. The producers made it clear if we had an issue we tell them first. Our plan was to keep low and head out quietly. That failed when my wife’s prawns were served raw. As previously said, there was a lot of alcohol served to us. Granted, we expected to pay and no one was forcing it down us. But, it was clear they wanted us liquored up and we were happy to comply. When the first set of prawns came out raw they immediately gave us a bottle of champagne for free. Even so I’d guess our alcohol bill was North of $400 for the 4 of us.
Gordon did not come over to us which was also odd considering how much time we spent on camera. I’m sure there was a reason for it though. Ultimately, my 2 moments of fame, as I appeared twice, lasted for little more than seconds. The uncooked prawns had more air time than I did which suited me. Having said that, every time the show is repeated in the UK or the US I get abusive messages from my friends taking the piss out of the subtitles and the way I pronounced “raw”.
Sadly, my potential televisual appearance ended up on the cutting room floor of an early 1970s editing suite
My younger sister appeared as "run over girl" in a road safety TV advert. I went along to watch it being filmed and was asked to run down the street, towards the camera in a set-up shot.
I didn't make the final edit, though my sister made a fine road accident statistic.
My younger sister appeared as "run over girl" in a road safety TV advert. I went along to watch it being filmed and was asked to run down the street, towards the camera in a set-up shot.
I didn't make the final edit, though my sister made a fine road accident statistic.
Over a quarter of a century ago in my first year at university I joined a student political society. There was great excitement when it was announced that Newsnight would be filming a society dinner that an MP would be speaking at and I was pretty much pressganged into attending.
"Even better than getting on the telly", Kirsty Wark was going to be presenting the piece and for many in the society this was like Pamela Anderson pitching up at your birthday party.
It was a black tie or dark suit affair as a minimum. I've no idea how the others all found suits but I certainly didn't, and was duly featured on the tv in the background looking even more of a dick than the rest of the student members (which is going some) as the only person wearing a cheap brown jacket, crumpled shirt and dodgy school tie.
And I don't even remember seeing Kirsty fking Wark.
"Even better than getting on the telly", Kirsty Wark was going to be presenting the piece and for many in the society this was like Pamela Anderson pitching up at your birthday party.
It was a black tie or dark suit affair as a minimum. I've no idea how the others all found suits but I certainly didn't, and was duly featured on the tv in the background looking even more of a dick than the rest of the student members (which is going some) as the only person wearing a cheap brown jacket, crumpled shirt and dodgy school tie.
And I don't even remember seeing Kirsty f
king Wark.
I've been on TV twice.
Once, the crew of Wish You Were Here pitched up at the villa in Umbria that I was staying at. Interviewed my parents about the place, filmed me jumping into the pool to make my most impressive splash, and then had a big bbq in the evening that all the guests were invited to. Being about 8, I don't remember much but apparently Judith was very nice.
A few years later, Jack Brabham was being interviewed for North West Tonight, as he was to be reunited with his Championship winning car at the then newly resurrected Oulton Park Gold Cup. As he stood there in the paddock talking to the camera, the car was in the middle distance background when a couple of punters - myself and dad - obliviously wandered into shot and started poring over it
Once, the crew of Wish You Were Here pitched up at the villa in Umbria that I was staying at. Interviewed my parents about the place, filmed me jumping into the pool to make my most impressive splash, and then had a big bbq in the evening that all the guests were invited to. Being about 8, I don't remember much but apparently Judith was very nice.
A few years later, Jack Brabham was being interviewed for North West Tonight, as he was to be reunited with his Championship winning car at the then newly resurrected Oulton Park Gold Cup. As he stood there in the paddock talking to the camera, the car was in the middle distance background when a couple of punters - myself and dad - obliviously wandered into shot and started poring over it
Seeing as this is car forum, when I went to test drive what was to become my MG ZT260 back in 2005 I found myself being interviewed by the BBC for the Money Programme. The BBC seemed intrigued that I was interested in the MG and wanted to have a Vox-pop from someone with something positive to say (which I had!) about MG. They were doing a programme from the dealers' perspective. I told them I had a ZTT190 for 2 years with no problems and was disappointed that I would not be able to buy a UK designed, made and owned 4-seat family car any more. I expressed sadness that the Italians and French seem to be able support their car industries and for whatever reason we can't. I related my tale of buying the ZTT new for the less than the price of a base model BMW touring and having driven BMWs back to back I had chosen the MG and had had no problems or regrets. I blathered on a bit as in front of the camera, my mouth went dry and I also got a dose of verbal diarrhoea! I dreaded how I would come across and how my blathering would be edited but as the guy said (expertly manipulating me before the interview as I was reluctant) it's not often anyone with something good to say about MGR is given the chance! Sadly the interview was lost to the cutting room floor (probably a blessing to be honest though!)
Edited by Spunagain on Wednesday 24th April 13:58
Only been on TV once.
I went to Uni in York and used to go down to the Railway Museum as part of engineering studies, this was the original museum next to the station.
There was a proposal for a National railway museum to be in Swindon, with the small number of York exhibits moved there. I was on local news TV to argue that York was the righful home being central in the country and already had a good tourist infrastructure.
Soon after the Swindon proposal was dropped and the NRM was built in York, and its worth a visit.
https://www.railwaymuseum.org.uk/
I went to Uni in York and used to go down to the Railway Museum as part of engineering studies, this was the original museum next to the station.
There was a proposal for a National railway museum to be in Swindon, with the small number of York exhibits moved there. I was on local news TV to argue that York was the righful home being central in the country and already had a good tourist infrastructure.
Soon after the Swindon proposal was dropped and the NRM was built in York, and its worth a visit.
https://www.railwaymuseum.org.uk/
3 TV appearances back in the 1990s but only got paid for appearing once.
Was on 'Esther' in the mid 90s for which they paid me the equivalent of a day's pay, flew me down to/from London, picked me up from Heathrow and paid for two nights in a central London hotel even though the studios were in Wembley. The fee and expenses were all negotiated. There were 3 guests: one obligatory wierdo (not me...I think?), a fairly normal, mainstream guest (me...I hope!) and a tabloid journalist to add a little grist to the mill. The journo was Paul Callan, who worked for the 'Mail' or 'Express' at the time if memory serves, and he was pretty provocative but actually had quite a balanced outlook off camera and was a good laugh. He played his role well in front of the camera. Esther Rantzen played a pretty straight bat and I found her to be a really bright, sharp cookie.
Appeared in a feature on 'News at Ten'. What a lot of bks that was. Completely manufactured, artificial location shot of us at work. Directed by a tttish, poorly briefed location director who'd done no research at all about us and made an utter mockery of what we actually do. We objected strongly during the shoot and at the end of it more or less told them to fk off. Learned that the director had rolled his Volvo estate off one of the frozen local roads later that day and had written off the vehicle. Pillock!
Blue Peter appearance. Yay! Involving an RAF Sea King SAR helicopter and many, many Mountain Rescue bods. Could not have been more of a contrast to the 'New at Ten' shambks. Really professional crew including Simon Thomas, the Blue Peter front man on the day. Since it was a kids programme we'd decided to explain what we do in a simpler way but the director jumped in and asked us not to under pitch it. Afterwards she (the director) said that Blue Peter had quite a wide audience including adults. The timing, logistics and general organisation were really impressive. There was also a huge amount of good will towards the programme from all participants on the day, something the director said was pretty typical.
And I got a Blue Peter badge for my efforts! Which one of my kids took to school and promptly lost
Was on 'Esther' in the mid 90s for which they paid me the equivalent of a day's pay, flew me down to/from London, picked me up from Heathrow and paid for two nights in a central London hotel even though the studios were in Wembley. The fee and expenses were all negotiated. There were 3 guests: one obligatory wierdo (not me...I think?), a fairly normal, mainstream guest (me...I hope!) and a tabloid journalist to add a little grist to the mill. The journo was Paul Callan, who worked for the 'Mail' or 'Express' at the time if memory serves, and he was pretty provocative but actually had quite a balanced outlook off camera and was a good laugh. He played his role well in front of the camera. Esther Rantzen played a pretty straight bat and I found her to be a really bright, sharp cookie.
Appeared in a feature on 'News at Ten'. What a lot of b
ks that was. Completely manufactured, artificial location shot of us at work. Directed by a tttish, poorly briefed location director who'd done no research at all about us and made an utter mockery of what we actually do. We objected strongly during the shoot and at the end of it more or less told them to fk off. Learned that the director had rolled his Volvo estate off one of the frozen local roads later that day and had written off the vehicle. Pillock!Blue Peter appearance. Yay! Involving an RAF Sea King SAR helicopter and many, many Mountain Rescue bods. Could not have been more of a contrast to the 'New at Ten' shamb
ks. Really professional crew including Simon Thomas, the Blue Peter front man on the day. Since it was a kids programme we'd decided to explain what we do in a simpler way but the director jumped in and asked us not to under pitch it. Afterwards she (the director) said that Blue Peter had quite a wide audience including adults. The timing, logistics and general organisation were really impressive. There was also a huge amount of good will towards the programme from all participants on the day, something the director said was pretty typical.And I got a Blue Peter badge for my efforts! Which one of my kids took to school and promptly lost
Edited by Depthhoar on Wednesday 24th April 15:27
Edited by Depthhoar on Wednesday 24th April 15:28
I was on Japanese TV about 10 years back. Very odd experience showing a crew round a big house, no doubt dubbed with a voice over saying whatever they wanted and not what I was saying.
No money but they bought loads of little toys and gifts for my two kids who were running round and sent me a DVD of the footage a few months later which was nice.
No money but they bought loads of little toys and gifts for my two kids who were running round and sent me a DVD of the footage a few months later which was nice.
I was on Go for It a year or so back.
Didn't get paid, but ITV sent a van and driver to collect all my vacuums, and booked my train ticket and kept me locked in a tiny room for 7 hours with a fridge full of food and drink which I emptied as I was told I could.
I did st and was out by round 3 because (amazingly) vacuum cleaner motors sound completely different in a sound tuned studio than they do in my living room which is where I rehersed it all for a month.... Didn't get the £1000 cash prize
Spent the rest of the day whilst everyone else was being filmed drinking free coffee and smoking in the This Morning garden (had to wait for my partner who was in the audience so we could get the train home, I was 3 out of 7 being filmed that day)
They then paid for everything to be delivered back to me which arrived thrown in the back of a transit with a few things damaged annoyingly.
Was a good day out though!
Didn't get paid, but ITV sent a van and driver to collect all my vacuums, and booked my train ticket and kept me locked in a tiny room for 7 hours with a fridge full of food and drink which I emptied as I was told I could.
I did s
t and was out by round 3 because (amazingly) vacuum cleaner motors sound completely different in a sound tuned studio than they do in my living room which is where I rehersed it all for a month.... Didn't get the £1000 cash prizeSpent the rest of the day whilst everyone else was being filmed drinking free coffee and smoking in the This Morning garden (had to wait for my partner who was in the audience so we could get the train home, I was 3 out of 7 being filmed that day)
They then paid for everything to be delivered back to me which arrived thrown in the back of a transit with a few things damaged annoyingly.
Was a good day out though!
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