One of the UK's smallest TV production outfits,
Serious Leisure TV, is launching two specialist programme strands on satellite
next week.
Goodbye, 9 to 5! is aimed at
people over 55, retired or keen to be, while Countryside
Britain has a mixed target audience of countryside enthusiasts, both
working and recreational. Both programmes will occupy the same time slot on
alternate days, six days every week, and the first programme pair will play for
two weeks before being followed by weekly editions.
The programmes will be broadcast by niche
broadcaster Information TV on Sky channel 166 and Freesat 402,
which already broadcasts Serious Leisure's Caravan Channel
programme - which has been running fortnightly programmes for near three
years.
Goodbye, 9 to 5! is due to
premiere at 6pm on Wednesday 10th June, and will play on Wednesdays, Fridays and
Mondays; Countryside Britain premieres at 6pm on Thursday 11th
June, and plays on Saturdays, Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Chris Gosling, who started Serious Leisure TV three
years ago, says that producing original material for satellite channels is
difficult, but very rewarding. "The object of the exercise is to produce TV
which will interest highly specific audience groups, without spending the
amounts of money terrestrial TV splashes around. That means the research and
journalism has to be good, but production values aren't so slick - but that can
be an advantage."
"I believe that specialist programme viewers are
increasingly looking for programming which directly addresses their interests -
but mainstream broadcasters tend to produce only for a mass audience, so their
material tends to try and inform/entertain a mass audience. In our concept, we
talk to our audience as people who often know as much or more than we do about
their specific subject."
"That specialist audience is also expert enough to
easily detect when broadcasters aren't at home with their subjects, or don't
have a genuine personal interest in the topic - and they react poorly to that -
they'd rather see serious information presented in a straight-forward way
without flashy effects."
Gosling believes that his style of production has a
very strong future. "We've had staggering success with The Caravan Channel,
which has broadcast around 70 half-hour shows over the last three years, and
with a similar boating programme, which we made 25 editions of, up to August
2008. I think we'll see similar success with this pair of programmes, which hit
markets where we know and understand the audience - because we are
them."
Goodbye, 9 to 5! premieres at 6pm
on Wednesday, 10th June on Information TV, Sky 166 and Freesat 402. It is
simulcast on broadband - see Information
TV's homepage watch now feature. It plays on Fridays, Mondays and
Wednesdays until 24th June, when it will be replaced by the next (weekly)
edition. Website is completing development
Countryside Britain premieres at
6pm on Thursday, 11th June on Information TV, Sky 166 and Freesat 402. It is
simulcast on broadband - see Information
TV's homepage watch now feature. It plays on Saturdays, Tuesdays
and Thursdays until 25th June, when it will be replaced by the next (weekly)
edition. Website is completing development
The Caravan Channel is broadcast on Mondays,
Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays at 7pm, on
Information TV, Sky 166 and Freesat 402. It is simulcast on broadband - see Information TV's homepage watch
now feature. There's a new edition every two weeks. Website is www.caravanchannel.tv
