I had a little tear in my eye when the cricket started How CTV prepared for the return of live Test matches By Will Strauss, Editor
Friday, July 10, 2020 - 09:58
Print This Story
CTV Outside Broadcasts is providing the COVID-safe OB facilities for Sky Sports during the Test series between England and West Indies, both at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton and Old Trafford in Manchester.
Speaking to SVG Europe mid-way through Day 2 of the first Test (Thursday, 9 July), CTV commercial manager Angela Gibbons described the experience of the last few months, and helping to get cricket back on the air, as a rollercoaster ride , going rapidly from thinking there might not be any cricket played this summer to finally going live on Wednesday.
We've had quite a COVID journey with this, she says. But Sky Cricket presented us with a fantastic opportunity. With so many events being cancelled, at one point, we were quite convinced that an international cricket season wouldn't happen at all.
We had to work out how we would fit all the required people inside OB11, while social distancing. Two-metre social distancing is at the core of everything that Sky is doing right now and is central to the overall safety principals.
One of the big challenges for CTV was how to get all the members of the production team and the engineers inside OB11, the preferred truck for Sky Sports' cricket coverage, but ensure people could work within the health and safety parameters.
OB11 is a triple expander, says Gibbons. It's a very large vehicle which was specifically designed for the International cricket specification. It's just about as big as you can get in the UK and across Europe. But we still had to work out how we would then fit all the required people inside, while social distancing. Two-metre social distancing is at the core of everything that Sky is doing right now and is central to the overall safety principals.
So, for the Test match coverage we are now using a VT truck alongside OB 11 and we have a portacabin too. This gives everybody the social distancing space that is required.
OB11 in action on Day 3, complete with perspex screens
There were lots of ideas and Sky were fantastic at looking at those ideas and working together with us to establish a really redundant plan that has allowed them to utilise their most loved cricket truck for the majority of matches.
A lot of work also went into deciding who needed to be on-site and what functions could be undertaken remotely. The statisticians, for example, are working remotely from home using comms links provided by CTV.
The important thing has not been taking anything for granted or thinking oh that's always how it happens so it has to happen that way now, continues Gibbons. So, we've really looked closely at what remote working we can do, how we rig and how we deploy people.
The rig time has increased with the need to clean down working areas. And the usual prep time has tripled.
Normally for the cricket, we spend a dedicated week getting the trucks ready and doing the technical preparation. Because of COVID, and how we've had to social distance at our base operation, that became nearly three weeks. We tried to ensure that departments weren't crossing each other too much and we tried to keep our numbers down and use the time to make things more efficient and safer.
We actually had an ECB testing centre at CTV last week for the first tranche of guys. Some of the freelancers came down too, she reveals.
There are perspex screens but it looks almost like a normal OB. If you've never seen an OB before you'd just think that's how people worked in there all the time.
Inside the trucks, perspex screens have been added, there are ionisers in each area and the units are given an overnight ozone generator deep cleanse. Masks are not essential, however, because the crew are kept in their bio-secure bubbles, staying at the stadium in one of the two hotels that are on site. On other OBs, CTV crew will likely need to wear masks.
Another addition to the inside of OB11 is an Aerial Camera Systems mini-cam which is providing the director with a shot of the gallery. During a rain delay on the first day's play, TV viewers were given a rare glimpse of a cricket production from behind the camera'.
You could see everyone was really adhering to the social distancing rules, says Gibbons proudly. There are perspex screens but it looks almost like a normal OB. If you've never seen an OB before you'd just think that's how people worked in there all the time.
There is no significant change to camera positions for match coverage. The overall Test match spec has been maintained, although there are no touchscreens for presentation and analysis.
Despite so many unknowns and variables, the team have been able to pull everything together quickly and efficiently.
We got the initial schedule late May, says Gibbons. So, we've effectively turned around an international cricket season in five to six weeks. It would have been intensive and exhausting in normal circumstances but the five weeks have flown by. Sky have been very supportive. It has been a very solid partnership. Nobody felt like they were walking back into an environment that wasn't as good as we could possibly make it.
Is it a strange experience for the crew? New, yes, Strange, no.
Our guys who do the cricket are just really pleased to be back. They've really missed it. We have had months and months of uncertainty as a nation and as a business. They went back in on that first day and I think there's a quite a big sense of relief. That camaraderie that OBs have. It is still there. It's just changed.
Gibbons herself is pretty happy too. I think everyone is just pleased to be back. I even had a
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
06/07/2026
Long-developed relationships and informal access, three production models, and c...
06/07/2026
The deal follows Lumine's recent acquisition of Synamedia's video-networ...
06/07/2026
This former SportsCenter producer is shaping local-team studio coverage to surro...
06/07/2026
IMS Productions and FOX Sports deployed more than 100 cameras, 32 onboard feeds,...
06/07/2026
Lumine Group Inc. has announced the completion of its acquisition of the Video Network Business from Synamedia. The business will operate as a standalone compan...
06/07/2026
NASCAR has announced a content and commercial partnership with Motorsport Network, a motorsports and automotive media platform, to distribute NASCAR original co...
06/07/2026
Versant Media Group has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Full Swing, a sports technology company, from Bruin Capital and a group of minority investor...
06/07/2026
DAZN has announced global broadcast rights to 3ICE, a professional hockey format featuring three skaters and a goalkeeper per side, with no power plays or offsi...
06/07/2026
Bundle gains 100 new synths & more
Synth Anthology 5 the largest and most feature-packed edition of UVI's hardware synth emulation bundle, bringing toge...
06/07/2026
Available now via free firmware update
MOTU have just announced that three of their popular audio interfaces now boast official Milan Certification. The 16A...
06/07/2026
Rohde & Schwarz completes Hunter Preliminary Design Review for the Integrated Co...
06/07/2026
The R&S IMAGER from Rohde & Schwarz uses millimeter wave imaging to inspect the ...
06/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
06/07/2026
Digital Domain Appoints Industry Veteran Patrick Davenport as Executive Vice Pre...
06/07/2026
Gravity Media USA appoints Brittney Boston as Head of Business Development
Brie Clayton July 6, 2026
0 Comments
The strategic new appointment supports...
06/07/2026
Remote Editing Without Cloud Storage in Resolve
Michael Cioni July 6, 2026
0 Comments
This is a step-by-step guide that demonstrates how to setup your...
06/07/2026
Automatic Caption Translation in Adobe Premiere Pro
Colin Smith July 6, 2026
0 Comments
Here I showcase the innovative automatic caption translation f...
06/07/2026
Flavor's First Ever Managing Director Neal Cohen Retires; Longstanding Execu...
06/07/2026
How Adam Rosenwach Pivoted from Music to Medtech Without Missing a Beat What do the rehearsal room and the boardroom have in common? More than you might think...
06/07/2026
Zhongyi Optics unveils the Dreamy Zone T1 FF Cine Lens Series on Indiegogo with ...
06/07/2026
Techtel debuts insyght: making ST 2110 media discovery easy
intellisphereinsyght2026
6 July Written By Suzanne Costello
Sydney, Australia - 06 July 2026 T...
06/07/2026
Monday 6 July 2026
Sky agrees to acquire ITV Media & Entertainment, creating a ...
06/07/2026
Fresh from his World Cup heroics with Cabo Verde, Roberto Pico' Lopes will join the RT panel for Argentina v Egypt tomorrow and for the England v Norway q...
06/07/2026
Nations have long invested in domestic infrastructure to advance their economies, protect and use their data, and take advantage of technology opportunities in ...
06/07/2026
Every year, the International Conference on Machine Learning (ICML) reveals where thousands of AI researchers have decided to put their work.
This year's ...
06/07/2026
A death can be unsuspicious, but it has to be explained
What happened to Ke...
05/07/2026
We've gone to another level of integrating the graphics into the set architecture' - Zac Fields, SVP, Graphic Technology and Integration, FOX Sports...
05/07/2026
Browser-based and desktop apps available
Digital Sunset Studios have been busy working on an interesting project: a free software tool that provides compute...
04/07/2026
When Canada qualified for the FIFA World Cup 2026, OneSoccer knew this wasn'...
04/07/2026
Celebrates company's 80th anniversary
Rhodes have recently revealed that they will be producing a limited run of electric pianos in celebration of their...
04/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Cameras Empower Youth Broadcasting Program
Brie Clayton July 3, 2026
0 Comments
Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro and Blackmagi...
04/07/2026
iZotope Joins Boris FX
Boris Yamnitsky July 3, 2026
0 Comments
iZotope, the team behind RX and Ozone, is joining Boris FX. A letter from founder Boris...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
03/07/2026
New bundle & three Single Packs
Continuing to expand their already sizeable orchestral collection, VSL's latest release introduces three new Single Pack...
03/07/2026
Venue installs new ATC-equipped control room
LSO St Luke's, a unique music venue that also serves as the home of the London Symphony Orchestra, have rec...
03/07/2026
Caden Pearson appointed new Commissioning Editor for NITV
3 July, 2026
Media releases
National Indigenous Television (NITV) has strengthened its commitment...
03/07/2026
1 February 2023
SHARE Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email
Munich, Germany, 1st February 2023: Cinegy GmbH, the premier provider of software technology for digit...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Death Star
Andy Marken July 2, 2026
0 Comments
Look, I can't get involved. I've got work to do. It's not that I like the Empire; I hate i...
03/07/2026
Berklee's New Visual Identity: Honoring Our History, Building for What's...
03/07/2026
Scripps Research scientists awarded $2M to advance global disease surveillance Two Gates Foundation grants will expand wastewater surveillance and AI-driven dis...
03/07/2026
Joan Pulupa joins Scripps Research faculty to study the organization of DNA in brain cells and its links to neurodegeneration Using smell-sensing neurons and ad...
02/07/2026
Entering her senior year, this hometown girl is paving a career in live sports production gaining experience in replay and audio and as a TD
In the live-sports...
02/07/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
I had a little tear in my eye when the cricket started How CTV prepared for the return of live Test matches By Will Strauss, Editor 
