A great day at Maida Vale Studios

As part of Maida Vale Studio's 75th birthday celebrations I've been spending the day eavesdropping on what's been going on. Here's Yusuf Islam and band rehearsing in MV3 for Radio 2's Ken Bruce Show. But it's not Ken's voice I hear, it's Zoe's.

Next up it's Snow Patrol on Radio 1 with Fearne Cotton in MV4.

It's the first time I've been to the Maida Vale Studios and while it's brilliant to get to see and hear today's artists rehearse and perform, it's also a great opportunity to sneak around.

This is on the ground-floor corridor:



The picture of John Peel hangs at the heart of the building. You can't help but see it as you make your way down to the studios. Next to it there's a sign that says: "Mushroom Biryani this way" and underneath it tells the story from 1983 of how the then unsigned Billy Bragg, hearing Peel declare on radio that he was hungry picked up a mushroom biryiani and drove it to the studio along with one of his recordings.

MV1 is a huge space that's being used today for the BBC SO with Yan Pascal Tortellier this afternoon and later tonight Dame Kiri te Kanawa for Radio 2.

There's cabling all over the building. There's miles of the stuff suspended up by the ceiling along all the corridors for the permanent networks. Then there's the clever use of tape to get the cabling to the kit that's come in for a specific recording. This is the scene outside MV4 where the Craig Charles All Stars are hanging out and by the sounds of it having an excellent time.

There's also this interesting use of tape which designates something which I vaguely remember from my health and safety training. We don't have this where I'm usually to be found:

It's the little things that I keep noticing. Outside the seemingly tiny studio MV5 where Corrine Bailey Rae is on Max on 1Xtra this afternoon there's a tray with discarded bottles of water on it. Looking more closely I realise there's also a bag with fresh ginger on it and a jar of honey. Singers need to look after their voices.

Corrine Bailey Rae in MV5:



While I'm writing this I can hear Jamie Cullen's band rehearsing for tonight's Radio 2 show.

There's still more to come tonight including Apache Indian's on Bobby Friction and a live radio drama for Radio 2. I was going to say that there's two things you wouldn't expect to find going on in the same building. Having been here I'm not surprised at all.

You can see more pics of the day over here.