With the Martin Place studies in Sydney coming to an end, I thought I’d think back to my first visit to the base, at the behest of producer Adam Boland, to see how two shows used the space.
Originally released June 11, 2008:
It was just another day in the goldfish bowl for morning casts of Sunrise AND The morning show When TV tonight dropped off Martin Place today.
Under the leadership of producer Adam Boland, the country’s most popular morning brands took place seamlessly at the roadside studio, built in the building that once housed Colonial Bank.
Studio space doubles for both morning shows, plus Seven news Sidney and Today Tonight. Therefore, there is a constant storage of sets being pushed to one side of the studio while another broadcasts live. THE Sunrise the team always finishes their show outside the building to allow for the Morning show ready to bump into. It’s a quick but efficient switch from the production crew.
As Larry and Kylie teamed up on their show, Kochie’, Natalie, Mark and Jessica all signed autographs for fans and posed for photographs. I was told sometimes they can stay there for 45 minutes for big crowds. Ahhh television….
Above the studio are two floors of open plan offices for news and Sunrise/Morning Show teams. You might be mistaken for thinking you walked into a call center, and it’s not hard to see where financial accountants and bank staff once came to work in the 1990s.
Indeed Seven had to make a number of compromises and changes to ease the space as a functioning TV hub. There is no traditional green room. There are no formal changing rooms. International guests are granted temporary use of the meeting room. And this must be the only television center in the country to have a bank vault cloakroom.
Boland has even forged what Seven sees as a self-contained production team, with the ability to occasionally promote other light entertainment projects.
The overall mood of these off-set breakfast television shows remained as relaxed and uneventful as it was on the air. With only a minimal crew, both casts connected seamlessly from subject to subject. News, tax tips, dreams, 4 minutes to save the world, “cash cow” giveaways, interviews, showbiz…it may not be the most challenging content but it’s digestible, radio on television while viewers are getting ready for work and catching up on the news overnight.
Both Sunrise AND The morning show continues to lead the country charts, helping Seven run their own cash cow.
