Bodies Live

Here’s my latest project as reported in this week’s Broadcast…

C4 to air live Bodies show online

21 January, 2010 | By Robin Parker

Channel 4 show Embarrassing Bodies is to break new ground by launching a live, interactive spin-off show that airs solely on the web.

Maverick Television is producing three 20-minute episodes of Embarrassing Bodies: Live that will air online immediately after the C4 TX of the main show.

In a live studio-based feed, C4 News reporter Bridgid Nzekwu will discuss the main talking points from the episode with the show’s three doctors: Dawn Harper, Christian Jessen and Pixie McKenna. The team will also catch up with a case from the previous week’s show that has been selected by viewers.

Throughout the webcast viewers will be able to ask questions, vote in polls and upload pictures of their bodies for the team to discuss. The site will also host commentary from sites such as Twitter.

About 150,000 people typically go to Embarrassing Bodies’ established site after transmission, and it has attracted more than 4 million visitors to date. Users have viewed videos more than 5 million times and the best of their uploads have featured in the main show.

C4 cross-platform commissioner Adam Gee said: “It’s woven into the whole fabric of the show to have user interaction shaping the editorial very directly. We wanted to push the boundaries of what’s possible with interactivity around television and make it personalised. The good thing about returning series like this is that once you have a decent web audience, you can use the platform to experiment.”

After the live webcast has aired, visitors can choose whether to watch a full-screen version of the web-feed or watch the interactive version retrospectively.

The first episode will air after part two of the new run of the show, on 10 February.

[Article reproduced courtesy of Broadcast]