On the road with Time Team coordinator Zoe Korsner

Mammoth task
To make a Time Team programme takes a crew of some 50 people or more. These include producers and directors, researchers and diggers, runners, specialists, conservators, three film crews and a presenter. All of these people, and the masses of associated equipment they bring with them, need to be coordinated to make sure they all arrive at the same place at the same time. This mammoth task of logistics and diplomacy is done by the production coordinator.

Time Team uses two coordinators, Jay Parsons and Zoe Korsner, who work on alternate programmes. Here Zoe Korsner talks about her job and working with Time Team.

After spending the last four years as a production coordinator in light entertainment television, Zoe decided to go for a programme that would get her more into the informative and educational side of TV. With a degree in geography, she wanted it to be something to do with the landscape. A contact in the business recommended her to Time Team and one month after her interview she started.

'Time Team is certainly different,' says Zoe. 'Obviously it's quite a change from a studio setting, but the actual programme content really keeps you on your toes. There's no rock solid script to run from; it all depends on what comes out of the ground.'

Back-up
A big aspect of Zoe's job is making sure that everything is available to make the programme run smoothly. This is not always an easy task when you're not sure what you're going to need. 'It's a bit of a juggling act,' she says. 'Firstly there are anything up to 70 people to get accommodated and make sure they all arrive at the same place. Then there's all of their equipment and the logistics of getting all the other gear together for the production from honey wagons to cranes. After that lot's done I've got to make sure that we have a host of specialists on call in the event of anything unexpected being found, and make sure I've got all my contacts sorted out for last-minute emergency requirements.'

Even as Zoe is interviewed, her mobile phone and comms headset don't stop calling for her: 'We need a big plasma TV for the incident room', 'Where can we park the skylift camera platform lorry?' and so on. Zoe smiles: 'There you go, I've got to find a large plasma TV monitor and we're currently in the middle of nowhere – another challenge.'

One big cake
'It's not that easy to pin down exactly what a co-ordinator does for a production because the role is so varied,' concludes Zoe. 'If anything, it's like one big cake. The crew, cast, diggers, specialists, equipment and back-up are all the ingredients and our job is to get the mix right.'

Hear Time Team coordinator Zoe Korsner talk about her job.

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