UK general election: Sky News leverages immersive sports studio to transform election night coverage

The hub of Sky’s Election Night is Sky Studios’ Studio 4 commonly used for Monday Night Football (MNF), Formula 1, NFL and boxing. Described by Ben Fisher, Head of Sky News Studio Output as “a 360-degree immersive space making a brilliant canvas for storytelling and data,” he explains that “as soon as we saw it on air we thought, hang on a minute, this is built for an election.”

Zonal marking

Sky News has split the studio into four zones. The large curved LED which acts as the backdrop for MNF will be the main presentation space for anchors Kay Burley, Beth Rigby, and Trevor Phillips, with Andy Burnham and Ruth Davidson as pundits. This will feature a screen dubbed the ‘window to the world’, featuring a mosaic of live feeds from 102 constituency counts.

The central zone is referred to as the ‘disco floor’, filled with a giant virtual map of the UK populated by results through the night. Ed Conway, Sky News’ Economics and Data Editor, will head this analysis zone and be able to call up AR characters such as MPs Grant Shapps and Penny Mordaunt.

“One of our big reveals on the night is we’ve made a life-size AR model of Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer,” Fisher says. “You know when you see AR footballers appear to walk out and make a gesture? Well, we got [the party leaders] to do that while they were in Grimsby for our leader’s debate on June 12.

“We’ve made a full-size 360 model of them. Their eyes will follow you around the room, the camera can get up close and personal. They’ll pop up variously through the night...