East Midlands Today often gets letters asking about the programme's weather service. Here is some inside information about a typical broadcast day for Sara Blizzard and Lukwesa Burak. It may look easy, but it involves a lot of hard work and long days.

Sara with all her weather wizardry at the BBC Nottingham weather centre

0530 Early start for Lukwesa!

Out of bed and straight to the fax, to check the charts sent from the Birmingham Weather Centre.

It’s then a quick call to the forecaster to compare stories, before writing the bulletins for all of the BBC Local Radio stations in the East Midlands region.

These are broadcast live between 0630 and 0840 from the weather desk at the back of the newsroom!

By now the tummy’s rumbling so it’s time for breakfast and checking correspondence.

1100 Sara arrives and together they run through the forecast and begin to create the television weather graphics.

A new system now allows access to the latest pictures from the Met Office computer in London.

Lukwesa at the weather desk

These help to show exactly what’s going on and what’s in store!

It always make us laugh as we’re well aware "nobody remembers when we’re right but no one forgets when we’re wrong!".

Whilst Sara compiles her lunchtime bulletin for the television, Lukwesa’s back on the radio with more live broadcasts.

Half-an-hour before she’s live on air, Sara is usually running around trying to apply her makeup and work out what she’s going to say.

Next stop the studio for her live lunchtime performance.

The length of the forecast can often depend on how much time is left at the end of the programme.

There’s no script on auto-cue, her job is to make the words fit whatever duration she’s given.

Timings and instructions are given via an ear piece just before and whilst she’s talking.

Sometimes it’s a bit like rubbing your tummy and patting your head at the same time!

1500 Sara has a conference with the London Weather Centre before returning to the East Midlands Today weather bureau to prepare the graphics for the programme before linking up with all four of the BBC Local Radio stations for their evening broadcasts.

1815 It’s then a mad dash to check the graphics, rehearse the forecast and slap on some more make-up before racing to the studio.

1900 The red lights off, and then it’s time to go home. In typical forecaster fashion it’s eyes skywards as soon as she’s out of the door… just to make sure that rain hasn’t arrived a little earlier than expected!

The next stop on the Tour