Watts Happening

When asked if I’ve enjoyed the Olympics, my response is a resounding yes, no hesitation. It’s been a brilliant month; I’m exhausted (and fully intend to sleep all day on Tuesday) but happy. I’ve had the privilege of working alongside very talented producers, directors, VT editors and LSM operators for 3 weeks. The atmosphere in the VT area of the IBC has been busy but calm, fun and friendly: Basically everything television should be. It’s a team game and I think we played it brilliantly. We even got a medal! I’m serious. We’ve all been awarded a participation medal and a certificate. If there are enough requests, I’ll take a photo of it for you.

It’s also always a privilege to work with Webby (and I’m not just saying it because he’s my line manager) who’s steered the BBC ship through precarious waters with his able shipmates Dave, Jonny and Rebekah. Thank you to all of you for your hard work, which has made this Olympics a fantastic experience.

It’s been a time for new friends too: Richie, Sean, Garry, Dan and McFloatey to name just a few and I mustn’t forget Angela: This morning I was woken up at 0630 by the phone. Angela, the volunteer on our bus had come to the hotel to pick up a gift I had for her. Reception wouldn’t let her through so I padded out to the lobby barefoot and braless to give her a present. The surprise and joy on her face when I gave Angela the gift is an image that will stay with me for a very long time as will her kindness and smiles on the bus every morning – even when we were grumpy and tired. Angela has given up her college holidays to volunteer and be a part of the Olympics and consequently won’t see her family (who live out of Beijing) for two terms. So thank you Angela and your fellow volunteers for being so friendly and welcoming.

There are so many highlights, most of which I’ve shared with you already: Christian Malcolm reaching the final of the 200m (oh yes, and being there to witness that guy Usain Bolt breaking world records over 100m and 200 metres.) Sitting with Jonathan, Dicko, Stu, Crammy and Brendan in the commentary box; sitting with AJ, Adrian and Steve in the swimming commentary box; working with our fab gymnastics team; organising a trip to the Great Wall for zillions of BBC people and them all enjoying it (what a relief) and being able to stand and marvel at the World’s greatest stadium. There’s also one that I haven’t told you about yet: The day that I walked to work barefoot in the rain. It wasn’t just a shower, it was a typical tropical storm with torrential rain but hot and humid, and the IBC was sooooo cold all of the time I knew my shoes wouldn’t dry in there, so off they came and out came the toes, splish splash through the puddles. I won’t be doing that in London.

Now I’m homeward bound. Reluctantly.

The conclusion of the Olympics marks the end of another four-year cycle and for those of us in sport it’s always time to re-evaluate. There’s thinking to be done, memories to be filed, photos to be printed and new plans to be made. Life is about priorities though and Mum’s is what I’m having for tea on Tuesday. As long as it doesn’t involve an 18-inch dragonboat of sashimi preceded by dessert I’ll be happy.

Thank you for reading and being a part of my Olympic games.
Love Laura x

It always surprises me when people say about our top athletes: "Oh they seem arrogant." You only see their work persona, the one that's doing the business on the track. Some strut, some stare out the opposition, others just visualise their race and focus on nothing but the lane ahead.

Whatever their approach, each individual has to believe they're the best in order to win. There are only 8 competitors on that start line and they're competing to be the best in the world. Imagine it, the best in the world. Why should arrogance be a surprise?!



For those of you who think that, here's the other side: Olympic silver medallist Darren Campbell made a point of being in the mixed zone to console/encourage/support Christian Malcolm after his 2nd round race in the men's 200m.

Christian's athletic career has run concurrently with my job in sport, so I'll be in the stadium later, to see him in the semi finals. It's very special to know someone who's in the race, fingers crossed.

I'm back late after watching Christine Ohurougu win a gold medal in the 400m.

I'm very proud of Christian for making the final of the 200m. What a moment for him. At least if this is my last Olympics I'll have plenty to remember it by.

Photos of Christian and Christine in the Beijing gallery.

There was a false alarm yesterday, when the time of Paula Radcliffe’s press conference was issued a day early, sparking speculation that she may have been forced to pull out of the Women’s marathon. Luckily, it was just an error and she was in the starting line up this morning.

It’s an amazing feat that Paula is even in Beijing, having been diagnosed with a stress fracture during her Olympic preparations. After failing to complete the marathon in Athens, it was a brave decision to make too, to start a marathon not fully fit must be daunting, to start it knowing that you have to finish it irrelevant of the pre-existing injuries must add unimaginable pressure.

With this in mind, to see Paula slowing and stopping to stretch out her leg, we feared the worst as we watched from the IBC. But she continued to run “on one leg” as she told Phil Jones. This to me deserves absolute respect. To finish had to be the aim.

We’ve seen Paula, Mara Yamauchi and Liz Yelling (amongst others) slog it out over 26.2 miles so frequently that I think we forget how far it is, how arduous it is and how much mental and physical strength it takes not just to complete the course but to prepare for it day in and day out. To witness Paula’s battle with injury today, served to remind me just how difficult it is and how much we take for granted because she’s dominated at the top level for so long.

So respect. Respect to Paula for risking it and for not sitting down. Respect too, to Mara for coming in 6th, equalling the best result by a Brit; and to Liz Yelling for taking a big fall, picking herself up and continuing to the finish, whereupon she was promptly ushered off to hospital to check for damage to her ribs. I admire their strength of character enormously.

It won’t surprise you to know that every one working here really loves their sport. We get handed anything at the last minute from archery to wrestling and the interesting thing is, that no matter what it is, we get sucked in to it most of the time, oohing and ahhing with the best of them.

Sometimes something extra special happens. You hear “come on” from one of the darkened corners of VT. Today it was from David and Vicky in the swimming channel.

“Come On,” a little bit louder and insistent. By this time, someone else has looked to see where the calls are coming from. They join in. By the time Becky Adlington was at 700m in her race, everyone in VT was watching the swimming feed.

The excitement as she pulled ahead of the World record (she was already clear of the field at this stage) was infectious. She touched the wall, winning gold and breaking the World Record and everyone in VT was cheering and clapping.

Well done Becky.

I can only imagine what it must be like to be the person on the receiving end of the roar of eighty thousand people. Just standing in a stadium when the crowd is in full voice is an incredible experience and one everyone should enjoy at least once in their lifetime.

I'm privileged to have heard the fans sing for Wales at the Millennium Stadium, cheer on their teams at the Rugby World Cup in Australia and support their athletes at numerous World Championships, Commonwealth Games and Olympics, but nothing compares to the noise the crowd made when Usain Bolt won the 100m in a World Record time.



Amazing. The Birds Nest didn't disappoint on the inside either. It really did come to life, pulsing with the energy and aftershock of hosting the fastest man on earth.

There are moments in live television that are spine tingling. Friday was one of them. After months of anticipation and preparation we were about to go on air with the opening ceremony. As Aileen counted us in to the programme, the adrenalin was coursing through more than one body in the building. Watching my friends direct in the gallery made me feel like a part of something special.



It’s calm but wired in that darkened room. Everyone’s preparing their next move and hoping that technical gremlins are all flushed from the system so that the presentation team can hear their instructions from the director and editor through the noise of the capacity crowd in the Birds’ Nest. What an amazing ceremony it was too. I still can’t believe how that many people can drum in unison. If it had been a Far Side production, the man with the triangle would have really been in trouble! (Dad, you may be the only person who gets that line.)

It was my first day in the IBC (International Broadcast Centre) today. Walking in was like a flash back to Athens. It’s a huge square building which houses the world’s broadcast media, so it pretty much does what is says on the tin.

We actually go through security for the IBC at our hotel, which entails having our accreditation scanned and bags x-rayed as you would at airport security. In fact, security appears to be fairly tight in the hotel. Non-guests have the metal detectors run over them as they enter, we have to use our key cards to access the corridors to our rooms and there are security guards at the entrance to each of those corridors.

Some of the guards are embracing their British guests, greeting them, however bleary eyed they are, with a ‘good morning.’ Some deliver it with more gusto than others; catch them in the right mood and they also run across the corridor to open the door for you once the key card has beeped you through.

We travel on the media bus to the IBC, in the special Olympic lane; the road really does have the Olympic rings painted on it. Today we zipped past three lanes of bumper-to-bumper traffic and arrived at the IBC in 30 minutes.



Buses though, appear to be the same the world over. After a day editing swimming guides I left the IBC with Josephine intending to get the 1830 bus. Sadly, despite being surrounded by buses, our trusty steel steed failed to appear at 1830 and 1900. By this time Sue, Liz and Sally had joined our 'waiting for the bus' party and they managed to negotiate for another bus to do a drive by at our hotel, proving that good floor managers can fix anything!

With luggage stowed and my seat taken there was only one thing left to think about. Who’s in the seat next to me? The answer? No-one. And next to no-one was Sue Boyd, so no Far Side character for me. What a relief!

Our flight to Beijing was a lot shorter than I was expecting: 9 hours, 2 films, 2 snoozes, 1 fish pie and 1 rice pudding long to be precise. The jury’s still out on the fish pie, Carl liked it, Josephine hated it and I ate half of it because I was hungry. Everyone agrees though that the rice pudding was very tasty.

Jim Neilly unofficially launched the Games on landing, when he held up his duty free, clinked the bottles together and announced: “Let The Games Begin.” Who needs an Opening Ceremony, when you’ve got Jim on your team?

We were escorted through customs by 2 smiley volunteers, transported to our hotel by a bus driver with a dubious sense of direction and were safely ensconced in our rooms 3 hours after landing.

A couple of hours later Sue, Josephine and I met up, bleary eyed and less than enthusiastic about being awake. Fortunately, the BA crew had recommended a Chinese café to us, which was literally over the road from the hotel. The food was fantastic so I don’t think it’ll be the last time we’ll be eating there.

Taking my responsibilities as tour guide seriously, I jollied my intrepid, tired team into a taxi so that we could see Tiananmen Square on our first day in Beijing. It’s a huge area, full of (mainly) Asian visitors and interesting to see. Our faces and accreditation attracted attention and we now feature in a number of people’s holiday snaps.

Having packed Josephine off to return to her bed, Sue and I went to an Acrobatic show in the evening. It’s the first time we’d seen a bicycle in a capital that’s embracing the motor car at a rate of knots, this one had 12 people on it.

First impressions of Beijing: It’s dominated by wide roads, tall buildings and doesn’t look Chinese at all in the majority of places. It’s clinical and lacks the colour that other Asian cities boast. I have no doubt that they’re going to put on an Olympic show to remember, but at what cost?