The initial shock on people’s faces when I tell them I wake up at half past two in the morning to go to work will never get old. First comes confusion, as if they haven’t heard me properly. Next, the facial expression that usually follows a punch to the gut. And finally, the sympathetic questioning: “Are you okay?” — mostly to check my mental state for voluntarily waking up in the middle of the night.
Only once I explain that I’m a TV producer for a breakfast news show does it start to make sense to some people.
So yes, I’m up at half two in the morning, when the streets are sleeping and the city’s in its own little bubble. That is, unless it’s the weekend — then it feels like you’re part of a motley crew either on their way home or off to continue the night somewhere. All with an added sense of smugness, knowing there’s no hangover coming your way.
By 3 a.m. I’m in the office. The whirling of monitors, the overnight hoovering, and the replay of the night before’s show all seem louder than necessary — though perhaps it’s just a sensitive hour to be awake. After an hour or so of getting on with your jobs, the team’s social batteries spark to life, and the kind of 4 a.m. chit-chat that makes perfect sense only at that hour begins. Don’t get me wrong — there are some stellar moments: from a deep dive into President Trump’s latest tactics to the same level of analysis for Taylor Swift’s newest album.
By the time we hit 5 a.m., the presenters are in, colleagues appear in dribs and drabs, and the studio comes to life. Lights flick on, microphones are tested, papers laid out, rundowns printed, and the smell of coffee is overwhelming.
The last 30 minutes before we go to air are the most crucial, entertaining, or high-stress — depending on the news day. It’s either legal checks, briefings, and cheat sheets of facts, or expanding that 4 a.m. conversation about Taylor Swift to the wider newsroom.
At 06:00, we’re LIVE.
What happens before most people wake is preparation, caffeine, rehearsals, second-takes, and the kind of sharp focus that only early mornings demand. There’s very little glamour in it — but a deep, raw satisfaction in knowing that what looks effortless on air was anything but. The guest ran late, the wrong camera flashed up, we rewrote the opener… but you’ll never see that. You’ll just see the anchor, the set, the stories. And that’s why I love this world. While most of the world hits snooze, we’re already telling it.
Not Sophia Loren 
One response to “What Happens Before 6AM: Behind the Scenes of a Breakfast News Show”
thank you for showing and telling us behind the scenes ive always wondered how early the presenters of breakfast shows get up was thinking 4 maybe 5 but what you don’t realise is the crew behind the scenes who get up at 2??? wow that’s insane , its almost 2 am now haha almost time to wake up. Must be a nightmare in the winter especially
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