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Behind the scenes with producer CNN royal tour
So many people have asked me what a field day as 10 Royal Tour to CNN?
To be answered, exhausting, yet satisfying.
CNN compiled a small team of journalists to follow the Duke and Duchess just married their first official tour abroad. "Team Foster" as we have in planning consists of Max Foster, Royal correspondent based in London, Sarmad Qaseera, photojournalist and affectionately called Buddha nicked for me and its bravura technique veteran of 13 years New York Bureau of CNN.
None of us have ever worked together in the lowest, left alone to take a 10-day trip through the us from Canada, Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City, Prince Edward Island and Calgary.
Max and Sarmad continue the tour when sprayed on the Hollywood scene after leaving Canada. I get home to my wife and the dog and the bed.
Planning started several weeks out with a colleague James Partington from our London Office, getting the ball rolling on the trip. James was largely responsible for CNN's coverage of the wedding and had access to the Royal route. Due to other commitments, James was able to go on this trip so choose me, I'm sorry, James.
All of us arrived in Ottawa a day before the Royal couple. Traveling with 14 cases of gear is never easy. Sarmad and I went to our position where we would be broadcast from when Prince and Catherine arrive in Ottawa. We were interested in making sure that we were able to get a clean signal, given our ability to broadcast. "Foster's Team" took the decision to transmit from one place each day of the tour instead of following the couple from place to place, like many other journalists accredited to 1300.
As a producer, I am responsible for making sure that the team is on the verge either by a logistically and an editorial one. From the route of transmission for travel, to make sure no one goes mental (including me).
Some of the best well thought the plans mean nothing when variables beyond the control of interfering. Given the length of the trip I will not go into detail about every day, but rather highlight some of our best and inspiring moments from the tour so far.
The best times are:
¤ Meeting the actual height to an "off the record" media reception on Prince Edward Island. They seemed very engaged and really happy to be on tour.
¤ Eat mussels in Prince Edward Island on Prince Edward Island. I promised myself that no matter what I did would have found time to dine on them.
¤ Seeing the charming city of Quebec and the beautiful, kind and very accomodating people of Canada.
¤ Contributing to our coverage, with an estimated 15 direct hits and day to CNN and CNN international, packages, editing images, blog and behind the scenes reports CNNi Show background.
With the well is good ...
¤ About 4-5 hours sleep per night
¤ Lugging gear around 14 cases through the Canada Day on Parliament Hill, because our driver couldn't Park near us.
¤ Airline losing 8 of 14 cases
then find them.
¤ Hotel booked for our driver in the wrong cities busiest day in Montreal after 18 hours of work.
As you can see the life of a producer on the road can be fun but also challenging.
Now landing in Calgary for the rest of the tour. I'll check back in when its all over. So far I would say its been a success not only for the Duke and Duchess but for CNN as well.
Filed under: General
Quiz the cast of Harry Potter
Is the end of an era.
Next week sees the premiere of the final film in the Harry Potter franchise, Harry Potter and the half-blood Prince, part 2.
Becky Anderson of CNN International is about to sit down with Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Tom Felton and Matthew Lewis to talk about his new film-and life after the film.
What it was like growing up in the spotlight? What could keep their future careers?
Post your questions for these connectors own Wizardly wits below.
Filed under: connector of the day
Quiz-winning author Jeffrey Archer
Jeffrey Archer was one of the writers of the world's most successful, having sold more than 97 countries 350million and books in over 37 languages worldwide.
But in addition, the British novelist is himself a great story.
He is also a playwright, former MP and candidate for Mayor of London, an Olympic champion and a convicted felon.
Archer's rise to fame began with his first novel "Not a Penny more not a Penny less" written in 1975 to repay lenders from a bad investment that left him on the brink of bankruptcy. It has defied the critics and became a best-seller.
In the past 36 years, he continued to write novels, plays and short stories, including the series "prison diaries", written during his period of two years in prison after conviction for perjury and perverting the course of Justice during a 1987 libel against the British tabloid The Daily Star ".
Archer has now just been penning his 16TH novel, only time will tell, the first in a series of proposal known as The Chronicles Clifton.
Filed under: connector of the day
British actor Dominic Cooper Quiz
Dominic Cooper has largely treading the boards of success for the past decade, but 2011 is proving to be his big breakthrough year in film.
The British actor, best known for his roles in "Mamma Mia" featuring Amanda seyfried and "The Duchess ' starring Keira Knightley has four films opening this year.
And the one causing the biggest sensation is "Double Devil" in which Cooper Uday Hussein plays and Latif Yahia, the Iraqi army captain, who was forced to become the body double of firstborn notoriously sadist Saddam Hussein.
The film is based on a memoir of Yahia and gives a dramatised account of life under Hussein.
Becky Anderson speak of Dominic Cooper about his role in the new film as hero and villain.
Filed under: connector of the day