Obtaining Material from the BBC Archives

[Paul Cooksley]

Hi there

Just a quick question that I wonder if anyone knows the answer to....

I know that via the 'contributors access' method, providing you have played a part in making/starring in a show, you can request a copy from the BBC (subject to it actually still exisiting of course!)

My question though is this: When the BBC run you off a copy, is it like a broadcast copy? Ie Can you request a DVD copy of a show? Will it look like a true high quality copy? Can they record the VT Countdown clock on there if you kindly ask them?

Sorry - just wondered if anyone has had any experience of this at all .... maybe Andrew (Martin) might have some knowledge of this??

Regards

Paul

[Gary C]

....I would have thought there would be timecode in vision SOMEWHERE just so that you CAN'T re-transmit it ??

[Nosmo King]

I believe copies are available only on VHS (PAL or NTSC) not DVD-R (or DVD+R etc.), unless this has changed very recently. I would have thought not. Certainly there will not be a pressed commercial DVD for one copy!

There are no timecodes, the programme is a clean copy ... but with a standard copyright warning at the start.

I'm not sure if they would include countdown slates/clocks ... it's not done as standard. You could ask.

Prices are around £100 + VAT for a hour, some discount if more than one episode is requested.

All the details are on a fact sheet requestable from Contributor's Access dept at the BBC.