We’re at MediaCity Salford for the next few days recording the Blind Auditions for The Voice UK 2018.
This is the seventh series of The Voice UK, and the second for ITV. New boy Olly Murs joins Will.I.Am, Jennifer Hudson and Sir Tom Jones in the famous chairs.
We’ve been controlling the iconic coaches’ chairs since the very first series of The Voice UK. Our computer system coordinates the button presses, chair motor drive and associated lighting cues, ensuring that all of the show’s drama unfolds safely and on cue for every performance. Reliability, safety and accurate control are paramount requirements on this complex production. We also provide additional status displays and timing facilities for production use.
In answer to an often-asked question – yes, the chair buttons really do work! When the coaches press their buttons, our systems check the safety interlocks and then trigger all of the events (motors, lighting etc) that follow. Of course, we’re also able to turn the chairs under computer control, which allows us to turn them all together for the beauty shots of the chairs turning in unison to face the contestants and also resetting after a performance.