Sunday Politics Studio Upgrade Expands Audience Options
NI's Sunday Politics programme is launching a modernized studio, offering a refreshed visual experience for viewers. The first broadcast from this new studio is scheduled for this weekend, marking a significant change in how the programme reaches its audience.
With the studio update, Sunday Politics will now be accessible not only live on BBC One NI but also for the first time simultaneously on BBC Radio Ulster and Foyle. Additionally, the show will be available on digital platforms including BBC and , broadening the ways viewers and listeners can engage with the content.
"It's going to be an awful lot easier for people to watch or listen to this programme, for example, on their phones or on their tablets."
Mark Carruthers, the presenter of Sunday Politics and The View since 2012, emphasized the increased accessibility the new studio facilitates.
"Moving to the new studio allows us to increase the reach of Sunday Politics," Carruthers said, highlighting the programme's expansion onto four platforms simultaneously. He acknowledged that while this development is exciting, it also presents new challenges.
Continuity Amid Studio Changes
Sunday Politics has undergone studio changes before. Carruthers recounted the programme's evolution in set design, from early soft seating arrangements without traditional desks to the desk format adopted in Studio B years ago.
"If you go back to the beginning of it, we actually had sort of soft seats, no seating with a coffee table, and then that changed when we moved into Studio B a number of years ago, and we went back to sort of desk format,"he explained.
He believes the current update will present a "modern and very fresh" look. Despite these visual changes, Carruthers stressed that the core content of Sunday Politics remains consistent.
"It's still Sunday Politics,"he affirmed.
Having joined BBC Northern Ireland in 1989, Carruthers reflected on his 37 years of experience, noting the constant evolution of the broadcast landscape.
"Nothing stays the same,"he said.
In addition to his television roles, Carruthers hosts Red Lines, NI's politics podcast.
"The whole broadcast landscape is changing and changing so dramatically,"he remarked.
"We have to think about our audience first and foremost, and the way people consume news, the way people consume current affairs is changing."
The programme will continue to feature discussions and in-depth interviews aimed at setting the political agenda for the week ahead.
"We want to make sure that we're setting the agenda for the coming week on a Sunday morning,"Carruthers said.
"If you're working in news and current affairs, you want that to have an impact. It's really important for us to be getting a live politics discussion programme out on the BBC Radio Ulster schedule again on a Sunday morning."
Editorial Perspective on Multi-Platform Expansion
Senior news editor Gwyneth Jones expressed enthusiasm about the transition to a multi-platform studio, recognizing the shifts in media consumption habits.
"I think there's a realisation, and there has been for some time, that we need to go where our audiences are, so that is no longer only on a linear broadcast telly format,"she said.
Jones emphasized that despite the changes in delivery, the programme continues to provide trusted live political journalism that holds public figures accountable and scrutinizes their decisions.
"We are still delivering the same trusted live political journalism where public figures are held to account and where their decisions are scrutinised, as we've always done, but we are bringing that to a much wider audience."
Upcoming Broadcast Details
Finance Minister John O'Dowd will be the first guest politician to appear on Sunday Politics from the new studio.
The programme is set to return on Sunday, 19 April at 10:00 BST. It will be available for viewing on BBC One Northern Ireland and BBC , and for listening simultaneously on BBC Radio Ulster, BBC Foyle, and .
