Wednesday, February 10, 2010
REVEALED! Behind the scenes secrets of Morning Live's Thursday morning Cape Town broadcast.
You're reading it here first.
Tomorrow morning, Thursday between 06:00 and 09:00 in an extended live broadcast on SABC2, you can see Morning Live coming to you from Cape Town and I've got all the inside scoop from behind the scenes to reveal exclusively here first.
Exactly a week ago I broke the news RIGHT HERE first that Morning Live will be coming to viewers from Cape Town this week, and now I have all the must-know details from behind the production of SABC2's flagship morning show to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the release of Nelson Mandela from prison. Why will Leanne Manas still be in Johannesburg? Who will be the high-profile guests? Who might do a short long walk to freedom? I know it all.
Click on READ MORE below for all the must-know info behind the broadcast you will be able to see tomorrow.
Viewers can tune in for South Africa's biggest morning breakfast show tomorrow (Thursday) when Morning Live on SABC2 with anchors Vuyo Mbuli and Leanne Manas with have a special and extended Morning Live broadcast to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the release of Nelson Mandela from prison.
First of all I can tell you that Morning Live will obviously run an hour longer, taking it to 09:00, but get this - the show might actually be extended even further into SABC2's daytime line-up depending on how things go. SABC2 and Mornng Live producers will have to judge the show by what is happening on the ground - literally - as high-profile guests may or may not show at the prison, might show up late, or might agree to impromptu interviews on the spot.
What Morning Live would like to do, is to retrace and rewalk the road that Nelson Mandela walked during his release from prison, with his former wife Winnie Madikizela Mandela. The logistical problem is whether she would be willing to do it, would be able to fit it in and the biggest hurdle of all: that Morning Live producers currently believe that would not be able to happen before 09:00 when Morning Live is supposed to sign off.
Anchor Vuyo Mbuli and crew is flying to Cape Town today and will anchor the show from the Drakenstein Prison outside Paarl (formerly the Victor Verster prison). Leanne Manas will remain in the Morning Live studio in Aucklandpark. Leanne Manas will do in-studio interviews with George Bizos, Madiba's stylist and other guests, while Vuyo and the producers will try to capture as many guests and dignitaries as they can who will be visiting the prison for the official commemoration event. Viewers will also be able to send emails to Morning Live that Leanne Manas will read out during the course of tomorrow's broadcast.
''At the moment we can't yet confirm anything in terms of guests because of the fluidity of the whole event, the fact that they will all be in high demand and that there is a high possibility that they might simply not be available in the short space of time,'' a Morning Live producer told me. Several ANC leaders, various activists and former UDF members have been contacted by the Morning Live producers and might show up and do live interviews tomorrow.
''All I can say is we're there and we will be capturing the event as it happens and unfolds,'' the Morning Live producer tells me. ''As per usual with these massive national events, from a TV making perspective we are a bit frustrated right now. There's a lot of red tape to cut through, you need answers to be able to organize and set-up stuff, but the answers are not available. So you do the best you can. At least it's always very exciting.''
''We do live TV every day. It is stressful but it's what we do and Morning Live will do it well tomorrow,'' the producer says. In terms of Morning Live's editorial team 2 producers are flying to Cape Town and the production team who will be at the Drakenstein Prison will include the floor director, cameramen and make-up. Because it's a big production and a live TV event, SABC staff from the Cape Town office in Sea Point has also been called in to help out which include journalists and editors.
''Ordinarily an outside broadcast (OB) is round about 32 people but we've got extra people now because we'll now actually using two units.''
Morning Live extended broadcast, Thursday, 11 February, SABC2, 06:00 - 09:00