[Jack_]

BBC announces Commonwealth Games coverage for Glasgow 2014

A host of popular presenters - including Hazel Irvine, Gary Lineker, Clare Balding, Gabby Logan, Ken Bruce, Susanna Reid, Bill Turnbull, Mishal Husain, Fred MacAulay and Dougie Vipond - will front the BBC’s Commonwealth Games coverage for Glasgow 2014.

The opening and closing ceremonies will be broadcast live from Celtic Park and Hampden and will be presented by Gary Lineker, Clare Balding and Hazel Irvine. Hazel will join Huw Edwards in the commentary box for both ceremonies.

Once the Games start, the BBC’s base will be in Pacific Quay in Glasgow from where they will broadcast across all major TV and radio networks, online and on BBC Red Button across the 11-day Games.

In addition to bringing all the action from the Games, the BBC also aims to boost the accompanying cultural festivities by using some of its leading presenters for both on- and off-air programmes - including 16 days of major events from a pop-up BBC@The Quay venue alongside the existing BBC Scotland riverside HQ.

A raft of key BBC shows including The One Show, BBC Breakfast, The Ken Bruce Show, A Question Of Sport and Who Do You Think You Are? will come from Pacific Quay during Games time – and more will follow as part of a daily schedule of live programmes and off-air events aimed at making the venue one of the main Glasgow festival hubs during the tournament.

Bruce Malcolm, BBC’s Head of Commonwealth Games, says: “As you’d expect, BBC Sport will provide the kind of coverage they did so brilliantly during the Olympics but we also want to join in the year-long celebrations both here in Glasgow and throughout the rest of Scotland by bringing our audiences a string of live events, concerts and Commonwealth-themed programmes. Both BBC Scotland and BBC Sport’s Games team will be based here in Glasgow for the duration, with PQ acting as our Commonwealth Games broadcast engine room.”

Coverage throughout the day will feature live sport with venue presenters on site including Clare Balding, Gabby Logan and John Inverdale.

Coverage will start each day in BBC Breakfast, before Mishal Husain presents the morning action from 9am to 12pm.

Jason Mohammad hosts from 12pm tp 3pm, followed by Hazel Irvine from 3pm to 7pm, with Gary Lineker taking up the reins for the evening show.

Mark Chapman will then bring together all the sports and late-night events in a highlights programme with Clare Balding co-presenting from various Glasgow locations.

As happened with the Olympics, subject to any necessary approvals, the ambition on BBC Three is to have an extended schedule devoted to live Games action and presented by a combination of Dougie Vipond, Lee McKenzie, Manish Bhasin and Dan Walker.


In addition to the unprecedented television coverage, Glasgow 2014 will be delivered seamlessly across mobile, tablet, desktop and connected TVs, meaning audiences can get closer to the action, wherever they are.

The coverage doesn’t wait until 2014 though, as presenter Mark Beaumont is currently following the journey of the Queen’s Baton Relay for the BBC as it travels across 70 nations and territories - all produced by a team at BBC Scotland. The BBC is also already involved in a year-long learning project with the British Council and Commonwealth Secretariat, Commonwealth Class, which is a special initiative that provides teaching resources, online debates and interactive activities for schools to mark the run-up to the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

Full Media Centre pack here

Edited quite a bit out of that so there's info on their radio coverage in the full press pack and stuff regarding BBC Scotland too (felt a bit stupid cutting that out considering the location but whatever, blow me)

Anyway, pleased to see they're going all out again with this and Sochi after the success of London's coverage

[Novo]

good to see Hazel will be there, great presenter. Lineker can **** off though, he has no knowledge of athletic, jonathon edwards is needed.

[Jack_]

I wish they'd given Gabby the round-up evening show again, 'Olympics Tonight' during London was great

[Jack_]

Just to update this with the latest press pack, including the full TV schedule:

Wednesday 23 July, BBC One and BBC One HD

Coverage begins with the Opening Ceremony from Celtic Park presented by Gary Lineker and Clare Balding with commentary from Huw Edwards and Hazel Irvine.

From Thursday 24 July 2014 and for the duration of the Commonwealth Games the BBC One and BBC HD and BBC Three and BBC Three HD schedule is as follows:

BBC One and BBC One HD

06:00-09:00: BBC Breakfast

09:00-12:00: Mishal Husain

12:00 – 15:00: Jason Mohammad

15:00 – 19:00: Hazel Irvine

19:00-22:30: Gary Lineker

22:40-23:40: Mark Chapman and Clare Balding (Today at the Games)

(There will be live presentation throughout the day from key venues with Clare Balding Gabby Logan, Matt Baker, John Inverdale and Jonathan Davies)

BBC Three and BBC Three HD

09:00-19:00: Dougie Vipond or Lee Mackenzie or Manish Bhasin

19:00-22:00: Dan Walker

Wall-to-wall coverage on BBC1 and 3 throughout the games, great to see

[Headie]

Only here for Athletics, which only starts on Sunday

[Jack_]

Athletics, swimming, track cycling >

Quite like some of the minority sports like badminton and judo too

I'm just glad they're putting this much effort into the coverage, it's going to feel like London 2012 again

[Firewire]

No Sue?

[Jack_]

A round of applause for the BBC's coverage of these games once again I've really enjoyed them and the wall-to-wall devotion and multiple streams has been excellent. Maybe it's too much to hope for this kind of coverage outside of home nation hosted events going into future Olympics and Commonwealth games but I really hope they do give us as as much for Rio/Gold Coast etc as they have done for London and Glasgow

These games have reminded me of 2012 and have proven once again why no one does sports coverage like the BBC