2017

Kenton Allen takes a look back at TV in 2017

January

I can barely remember what I had for breakfast, so thinking back to January 2017 is a little challenging. From memory, I think we were all discussing whether Jay Hunt was going to host The Great British Bake Off.

Certainly, we were all discussing those Jay Hunt rumours, which must have been about the vacant position of Bake Off chair.

In other news, we were all braced for the Great British Drama Boom and hoping that Left Bank Pictures wouldn’t get any more commissions from SVoD services that hadn’t yet been invented.

The Crown and Sherlock among RTS Craft & Design Awards nominations

The awards recognise the huge variety of skills involved in programme production from editing to lighting, and costume design to digital effects. 

BBC dramas lead the way in nominations. Taboo, which stars Tom Hardy is up for six awards, whilst Broken and Three Girls received four nominations each. 

Three Girls director Philippa Lowthorpe received a nomination in the Director - Drama category alongside Euros Lyn for Damilola, Our Loved Boy and Julian Jarrold for The Witnesses for the Prosecution, all for BBC One. 

A Transgender Story: RTS Wales takes a look at representation in the media

The documentary, which was made by Swansea-based indie Telesgop, aired in May on BBC One in Wales and a month later in England.

It continues the story told by 2016 doc Swansea Sparkle: A Transgender Story about the biggest transgender event in Wales. This followed three people from the transgender community – including Llyr Jones – in the lead-up to the event.

Inside Sky's Election Campaign: Covering the Election with Esme Wren

As part of the RTS Inside Sky’s Election Campaign series, Sky’s Head of Politics, Specialist and Business Journalism Esme Wren, who is overseeing the broadcaster's election coverage, reveals her plans for covering the surprise General Election.

For the broadcaster, getting outside of London is key to covering the campaign, after lessons learned from the Brexit and 2015 General Election coverage where the opinion polls were out of touch with the final result.

'#swn10' Screening

Toby Cameron,  Llinos Griffin-Williams,  John Rostron,  and  Huw Stephens
(Photos: On Par Productions, used with permission)

The 9th of February saw RTS Wales screen the much anticipated two-part documentary #swn10, an S4C commission produced by Green Bay Media and On Par Productions, celebrating the beloved multi-venue Cardiff music festival SWN - the creation of BBC Radio 1 DJ Huw Stephens and promoter John Rostron.