It was an invaluable insight into working at a radio-station, and a short clip of one of the reports was featured on the Wave after we visited.
It was an invaluable insight into working at a radio-station, and a short clip of one of the reports was featured on the Wave after we visited.
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He was relaxed, down to earth, making jokes" Sitting a café in the middle of Townhill this past Saturday were a group of BBC School Reporters (Sophie, Holly, Samantha, Chloe M, Chloe C and David), waiting anxiously to interview Benjamin Zephaniah: a critically-acclaimed, controversial poet that is known for discussing topics such as animal-cruelty and racial-inequality in his work. Having grown up in Birmingham, he began writing poetry at a young age, but was kicked out of school, without being able to read or write. Along with Mrs Davies-Boyle and Miss Hibbs, we worked with two people from the BBC, who read through questions we had put together in the week and attempted to calm our nerves while we all sat around a table drinking cups of tea and hot-chocolate. While we discussed how to make the interview more like a conversation than a Q&A session, we assigned ourselves questions and wrote them down on cue-cards, ready to say them on camera once the interview began. Although, firing questions at this unsuspecting poet was not the only thing the BBC wanted us to do. After the idea was announced that we should come up with a poem to present to Benjamin, we spent some time putting one together, at one point rhyming dreadlocks with socks!
Before long, it was time to begin filming; all of us a mixture of nerves and excitement as we took our place on a picnic-bench and talked about how we felt pre-interview, commenting on how, “It’s going to be an experience,” as, unsurprisingly, none of us had ever taken part in a filmed-interview before, with a huge microphone dangling precariously above our heads Thankfully, none of it was live, and could all be edited later. As if it was a scene from the likes of Long Lost Family, we were told it was time to go and meet Benjamin, and the people from the BBC decided it would be a great idea to film our reaction to seeing him. So, as we walked through the car-park, he met us at the other end, sending a karate-kick at the camera that immediately made us feel relaxed – almost. He was relaxed, down-to-earth and hilarious, making jokes and, once we had set up for the interview, he made sure to ask about us. When somebody announces that you should start a normal conversation, what should you say? Although, with Benjamin, we didn’t even notice that filming had begun. He asked if any of us were writers, and then we started asking our questions, just like a conversation you would have with a friend. At one point, once he shared his love of Kung Fu, a question about him showing us some of this was raised, and he took part in a demonstration with the smallest, more easily-breakable member of our team. Luckily, nobody was hurt. We recited our poem, in which he gave us some feedback, and he spoke about how he wished he had tried harder in school. He told us of how his teachers – who had once expected him to be serving a life-sentence – now came along to his shows, only for him to tell them to pay for a ticket just like everyone else. Benjamin shared his love of the poem, “Do not go gentle” by Dylan Thomas, and reacted to the recent unpopularity of reading. All of us agreed that it was a fantastic opportunity to talk to such an inspirational man, who had picked up his life and turned it into the opposite. The interview will be uploaded to the BBC Website on the 27th March |