The BBC has confirmed that its Saturday evening show Strictly Come Dancing is to join its HD trial from Saturday October 28 – making it the first live studio entertainment show ever to be broadcast in HD in the UK
Jon Beazley, controller of Entertainment commissioning, said: “Strictly Come Dancing is taking a fantastic lead by launching live HD entertainment in the UK. It’s exactly the kind of spectacular show we know audiences would love to see in high definition. For the small but growing HD audience, the BBC’s most glamorous Saturday night entertainment show just got bigger and even more exciting.”
The Strictly Come Dancing trial broadcasts will be the first time BBC Television Centre’s Studio One has been used for a live HD show, since it was fully fitted out for HD by BBC Resources.
Most of this run’s Strictly Come Dancing shows and results will now be included in the trial, which is available to satellite and cable viewers with all the necessary HD equipment.
Strictly Come Dancing joins an autumn line-up on the BBC HD trial that also includes Robin Hood, Torchwood, Planet Earth part 2, BBC ONE sessions, Lead Balloon and Into The West, among other shows.
Seven of the remaining nine Strictly Come Dancing shows will go out on BBC HD, simulcast at the same time as BBC ONE, including the exciting semi-final and final stages. Some results shows will be simulcast live with BBC ONE, and some will run later than BBC ONE on BBC HD, to allow for uninterrupted showings of Into The West.
New YouGov research reveals that PCs and internet access collectively top the list (32 percent) of technological innovations people could not live without; eclipsing TVs (19 percent), mobile phones (7 percent) and even washing machines (20 percent).
PC World has recently launched a Connected Home initiative, which has been designed to provide its customers with a digital lifestyle in which the computer is at the heart of their home entertainment system. Consultants at The Connected Home provide customers with comprehensive advice on product options, a home survey and a professional installation service to make their homes the envy of their neighbours. Its Connected Home showrooms are now open in four stores, two in London (Tottenham Court Road and Staples Corner), one in Birmingham and one in Manchester, offering a nationwide service. More information is available at www.the-connectedhome.co.uk.
The BBC has confirmed the following high definition braodcasts for October and November:
Torchwood
The new drama from writer Russell T Davies, Torchwood is a sci-fi crime thriller which tells the story of a crack squad of secret agents, setting their own rules and operating above the law to protect the public from both human and alien threats. Starring John Barrowman and Eve Myles. (Simulcast with BBC THREE from late October)
Sinchronicity
Set on the streets of Manchester, Sinchronicity is a stylish, strange and sexy comedy drama asking the question that haunts us all: “What if…?” (previously shown on BBC THREE)
Billy Elliot
Northern England, 1974. What’s a poor boy to do? Billy’s mam is dead, his brother beats him up for nicking his Marc Bolan records, his dad’s worried about the strike, his granny’s lost her marbles, the streets are full of riot police. And Billy wants to be a ballet dancer. Award-winning BBC Film (2000) (Simulcast with BBC ONE)
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