Two Pints of Lager Ends in Horror

26 April 2006: From decapitating heads and bodies being cut in two, to legs and even crisps attacking people, the final episode of the latest series of Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps finds itself outside the comedy sitcom zone and into the realms of horror.

BBC Post Production London, part of BBC Resources Ltd, has supported BBC Entertainment on fifty-five episodes of the highly successful comedy since its launch in 2000. As with the RTS award winning musical extravaganza in the previous series, the horror episode of Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps posed a new challenge for the team, both from a content perspective and technically. The genre demanded a different pace and narrative style for the programme, as well as more complex pictures and sound – a large quantity of effects were needed for the thirty minute episode.

BBC Post Production Editors Mark Lawrence and Nial Brown were involved in the project very early on. They worked with the producer, director and designer at the script writing stages, to establish what effects were feasible and help decide what to create in the camera and what to create in post production. Mark and Nial also attended the shoot, which took place over six days at Pinewood Studios and BBC Studios, to ensure the right footage was captured to make the effects believable. A key challenge was making sure the perspective was right in the green screen shots, as whilst you could adjust the size of the object or person you were keying in post production, the angle could not be altered.

Mark, who has won an RTS Award for his editing on Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, was responsible for all the Avid editing. It involved lots of fast cutting between multi-source material to achieve realistic effects.

Mark also performed the initial audio track-lay, drawing on BBC Post Production’s extensive Sound Effects Library to create moods and effects, such as a hammer blows to the head and accentuated blood squelching. Some sound effects were also created in the studio – for example sawing bones!

BBC Post Production Fire expert Nial Brown was responsible for the CSO (Colour Separation Overlay) green screen effects, for example removing the hands which operated the crisp packet and the character Donna’s upper-body when it was sliced in two, leaving only her legs. He also added lightening effects and applied extra blood, which required pain-staking detail to ensure continuity.

Mark says: “Although the final scene looks pretty straight forward, it was actually quite a nightmare to achieve! In order to sustain dramatic tension, the production team wanted to see the main character Janet leaving the house on a bright sunny day. However, on the day of the shoot, it was grey and overcast. We therefore had to find footage of the house from a previous episode, when the sun was shining and Nial then had to adapt it in the Fire. We made sure all the details matched the horror episode - putting in scaffolding for example - and then key in Janet. It looks great though… if you don’t notice it, then our work has been done!”

The final episode of Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps went out on Sunday 30 April on BBC Three at 10pm.


Programme Credits:

Producer: Helen Williams and Stephen McCrum
Director: Nick Wood
Designer: Harry Banks
Editor: Mark Lawrence
Fire Editor: Nial Brown

About BBC Post Production

BBC Post Production, a division of BBC Resources Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of the BBC, offers award-winning creative solutions using the latest technology. BBC Post Production facilities are the largest of their kind in the UK. Located in London, Bristol and Birmingham its extensive range of services include editing, audio and telecine. Using the most up-to-date technology in comfortable and inspiring surroundings, the team bring talent and experience to a range of productions, trails and promos. Further information can be found at: www.bbcresources.com/postproduction

BBC Post Production
Tel: +44 (0) 208 225 7702
Email: postproduction@bbc.co.uk

For further information, please contact:
Georgie Hollett, PR and Communications Manager, BBC Resources
Tel: +44 (0)20 8576 2250 Mobile : +44 (0) 783484 5612
Email : georgie.hollett@bbc.co.uk

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