Posted on: 29th September 2004, United Kingdom E-mail this page to a friend

i-Vision has supplied two different fixtures from its new Lumos LED range to light the new-look GMTV set.
GMTV is one of the most popular breakfast TV shows in the world. It's the first time in the UK that architectural Luxeon LED lighting has be permanently installed into a TV set to perform colour changing facilities. It offers the GMTV lighting team the opportunity to change the feel and ambiance of the set to suit the dynamic and ever-changing requirements of a live TV set.

The fixtures were specified by the programme's long term lighting director John Allard. The updated lighting and set revamp is part of the series' continual evolution, aesthetic reinvention and keeping pace with the times.

GMTV - "Britain's Biggest Breakfast" attracts 6 million viewers daily and recently won a National TV Awards for- Most Popular Factual Entertainment Programme. It's also the longest live broadcast currently on UK TV – running at three and a half hours.

The 'Lumos Drive 36' is a recent "TV friendly" driver system addition to i-Vision's Lumos range of LED products. Using PWM (pulse width modulation), LED's are pulsed at a far greater frequency than previously (2500-4000Hz as opposed to 50-60Hz). This enhances the smoothness of the RGB colour-change so it interacts with modern TV cameras without flicker.

Allard was keen to utilise LEDs because of their rich colour range and diversity, and their energy efficiently and robustness, as well as because it is a new concept for lighting installed TV sets. Having become aware of the i-Vision product line, he contacted project manager Luke Dodd, who conducted several demos before carefully selecting his products.

Allard chose 51 Lumos 3 down-lighters and 12 Lumos strips. These are ensconced into the tasteful, modern Miranda Jones designed set, backing the famous GMTV curved sofa.

The LED lighting is used to create different colour hints and identities for the three different sections of the show – the News, the main magazine programme and the women's section, LK Today, which has its own separate set.

The News programme is hinted with blue, the main programme with orange and LK Today with a glorious, rich, girlie purple (all interchangeable by request).

Allard is delighted with the results, "It's meant a vast reduction in the amount of fixtures I need to achieve the same result – a huge asset when working in a small studio like this - and it's a huge leap forward in terms of being able to stretch the imagination and dynamics of the show's lighting" he declares.

The ability to change the colour and feel of the set at the touch of a button is also a great asset. Being live television, unexpected events, guests or performers pop up every day and the lighting department is constantly on standby to 'rock 'n' roll' it if necessary. This is also far easier with the new fixtures.

The Lumos fixtures were installed and rigged by Allard's LX team of Jon Harris, Jo Hornagold and Matt Covely.