What's On BBC Red Button (28 March - 10 April)
Here's our fortnightly look at what's coming up under the red button...
BBC Sport Multiscreen
Catch up on all the latest sport via the BBC Sport multiscreen. Headlines are available around the clock with up to five additional streams available to cover the best that BBC Sport has to offer.
Coming up:
F1
For the first time since 1996 Grand Prix racing returns to the BBC with coverage that promises to be the most comprehensive in the history of the sport.
F1 fans will be able to customise their viewing experience via the red button, with access to all on-track sessions, including Friday and Saturday practice and qualifying.
On race day itself, a choice of three streams will be available featuring split-screen in-car camera feeds, leaderboards and rolling highlights, with the option to listen to either network or BBC Radio 5 Live commentary. After the end of each race on BBC One there will be an additional interactive programme analysing the weekend's events and picking up views from the paddock.
Australian GP from 27th March
Malaysian GP from 3rd April
Figure Skating
Live coverage and highlights of the World Championships from Los Angeles.
27th - 31st March
Limited coverage on Freeview
The 2009 Grand National
Ahead of the biggest event in the racing calendar BBC Sport previews this year's runners and riders. Meanwhile following the main event digital viewers can catch up with rolling highlights of the afternoon's action from Aintree.Preview: 3rd & 4th April
Highlights: 4th - 6th April
Limited coverage on Freeview
Golf: The Masters
Complementing coverage on BBC One, BBC Two and BBC HD, Sport Multiscreen pitches up to the notorious Amen Corner for continuous live action from the Augusta National.
8th - 12th April
Highlights: 4th - 6th April
Sport Multiscreen is available on Sky, Freesat, Virgin Media and Freeview. The full Sport Interactive schedule is available on the BBC Sport website
CBBC F1
CBBC Formula 1 fans will be in pole position this year as a host of familiar stars provide alternative commentary to each of this season's Grands Prix.
Join Michael "Abs" Absalom, Dan Clarkson and F1 expert Perry McCarthy on the Sport Multiscreen for interviews, sketches and up to date info on what's going on in each race.
Available on race days only:
Australian GP - 29th March
Malaysian GP - 5th April
BBC Comedy Extra
With a raft of exciting new comedy airing on BBC Two in 2009, digital viewers willing to tickle the red buttons on their remotes can keep the laughter going after the show has finished.
Following Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle and Dave Gorman's Genius look out for additional content, exclusive sketches not included in the TV series as well as talent associated with the shows doing their own thing for the first time.
Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle: 30th March - 2nd April & 6th - 10th April
Genius: 28th, 29th March & 3rd, 5th April
Available on Sky, Freeview and Virgin Media
Richard Bacon: 5 Live / Newsnight Debate
On Monday 6th April Richard Bacon & Newsnight will be discussing the c-word - cancer.
Are we finding it easier to discuss cancer openly these days?
Is the scientific research moving fast enough? And how do our survival rates compare with other countries?
Join the debate with Richard and his guests, live under the red button from 11.05pm
Available following Newsnight: April 6th, 11.05pm - midnight
Available on Sky, Freeview and Virgin Media
Timewatch: Shackleton Returns
One hundred years after Sir Ernest Shackleton and his men failed to become the first people to walk to the South Pole, Timewatch joins descendants of the original team as they attempt to complete unfinished family business.
Following the BBC Two programme, digital viewers wishing to continue the journey can press the red button for additional material related to the expedition.
Available: 4th April, 9.35pm
Available on Sky, Freeview and Virgin Media
CBeebies Games
Join in with all the regular games on CBeebies!
30th March - 5th April
Sky: Tweenies, Tikkabilla, Tweenies story
Freeview: Tikkabilla
Virgin: Roly Mo
6th - 12th April
Sky: Bob the Builder, Little Cook, Tweenies story
Freeview: Bill & Ben, Fimbles
Virgin: Tikkabilla
Not currently available on Freesat
1 v 100
Digital viewers can press the red button on Saturday nights to play along from the comfort of their living rooms as Ben Shephard challenges another individual to take on 100 opponents.
Saturday nights during the show from 4th April
Available on Sky, Freeview and Virgin Media
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Comments
Re: BBC Sport. Although since the revamp it's been much better for switching between the interactive feeds (on Freeview at least - annoying on Sky having to return to the multiscreen each time) and for accessing the sports text service as a whole, for events where in the past they'd get a dedicated interactive service it's much weaker now.
Last summer with the Olympics the associated text service wasn't as strong as the previous games IMO - although I think the content was probably still there, it just wasn't as user-friendly for navigating. And although I understand cost-saving is a factor too, they didn't feel very special in the same drab grey as the rest of BBC Sport.
However, considering the emphasis on F1 this year I think the text service on both Freeview and Sky is very poor content wise - just 3 or 4 pages of content when I looked after yesterdays practice sections, and if the times were listed I couldn't find them. Some sort of preview of the season, such as profiles of the teams or drivers to look out for, would have been great too.
It seems more emphasis was put into the text service for the rather pointless "School Report" feature earlier in the week than one of the BBC's flagship acquisitions for this year.
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P.S. A couple of additional comments specifically about Freeview.
One thing which has always been a problem IMO is the alternative commentaries - a great service at times (though I question the value of a CBBC commentary for the F1), but a waste of a video stream on Freeview - isn't it time they (I guess by "they" I mean you!) looked at making BBC1 capable of carrying any alternative commentaries itself, freeing up a video stream.
And secondly considering the emphasis on the return of F1 it was very surprising yesterday that for something like 8 hours a whole video stream was dedicated to a simulcast of R5 Live commentary. I'd have thought F1 would have took priority, especially considering the early start.
I do question the value in "enhanced" radio coverage on the interactive service, especially now with the cricket you seem to have been banned from anything other than a holding graphic. Although it may be a good idea to link to them from the interactive menu, wouldn't an MHEG based screen using the audio direct from the radio station (on the same mux) be a better idea, again freeing up that video stream.
Perhaps even with the cricket, depending on the detail of the rights, you may even get away with providing some scorecard information in MHEG text form that you're not currently able too in visual form.
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I do think BBC Sport is very well served on Red Button, particularlyas listings show on Ceefax page 358.
But non-Sport features haev no "Heads Up!" equivalent page to Ceefax page 358 as yet. Is it possible to give such a service: You could lose most of the detail of Ceefax pages 629 subpages 1 to 7 and any bits of BBC Two pages 460, 461 and 470 that have been superseded by Direct Gov Text pages if looking for bandwidth!
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The reason why we currently have to use a separate video stream for audio options is down to complexity of the broadcast configuration.
Basically it's easier for us to use a single stream rather than have additional audio options broadcast alongside each of BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Three and BBC Four.
For BBC One it's been especially complicated by the fact that there's 17 versions of BBC One - currently the picture is originated in London then sent up to each of the regions. Once there, any regional programming is inserted in, and then it's sent up to the transmitter.
Sending up a couple of extra audio options makes that procedure more complicated.
However that's going to change - all the regional opt-outs will instead be sent to a single, central location first, then sent to the transmitter - this will be more efficient and may allow us the opportunity to make some changes specifically for BBC Red Button. It is something we're going to be looking into.
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Never thought about the regions, but good to know it's at least being thought about.
I doubt it's practical or indeed necessary to ensure BBC2 and especially BBC3 and BBC4 are capable of carrying the extra audio, but for BBC1 it really would be freeing up that extra stream for a lot of the sports coverage, and would ensure that the rolling highlights service could be made available for virtually all Six Nations and F1 events.
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