Behind the scenes on Later… with Jools Holland

BBC Two’s Later… with Jools is returning for its 48th series. That’s right. The show is in its 24th year.

How has it survived when other series such as Top of the Pops and CD:UK have become part of music history?

Executive producer Alison Howe says it’s down to the programme’s simplicity in “putting together a show that offers a rich and varied mix of live music being performed in one room in one go”.

In one show you can see unknown acts making their debut next to more established artists, as Adele did when she played in 2011 alongside Björk and Paul McCartney.

Zoe Nicholson, the show’s production coordinator, is responsible for getting everyone down to the Maidstone Studios in Kent every week. There are sound checks on Mondays and camera rehearsals on Tuesdays before the evening recording and live transmission. Like working on any live TV show, there are quite a few challenges, but the main one Zoe says is “making sure everyone sticks to the schedule!”

For Zoe, a music fan herself, there’s a special privilege being in a small studio whilst world-renowned musicians perform together.