“IF you want to be on TV, smile,” conductor Ken Burton said to a crowd of singers baking in the June sunshine.

As temperatures hit 27c on Saturday afternoon, grinning through the searing heat three hours into recording may have been something of a challenge for the 100 or so singers, but for most of those in attendance, the occasion enough to keep people beaming.

Gazette: Accompaniment – the British Army Band Colchester Brass Quintet provided the instrumentalsAccompaniment – the British Army Band Colchester Brass Quintet provided the instrumentals (Image: Daniel Rees, Newsquest)

Songs of Praise has been running since the early 1960s, and is normally broadcast from churches, chapels, and cathedrals; Colchester bucked this trend at the weekend, however, with the Castle Park Bandstand instead acting as host for the national television cameras.

Gazette: Baking – Mayor and Mayoress John and Susan Jowers take a front row seat in the sun on SaturdayBaking – Mayor and Mayoress John and Susan Jowers take a front row seat in the sun on Saturday (Image: Daniel Rees, Newsquest)

Colchester had previously hosted the BBC for the programme in October 2011, when St Botolph’s acted as the venue – indeed, the church was pencilled in as a reserve location in case the weather turned for the worse.

But with filming taking place out in the open, it meant an electric piano and the British Army Band Colchester Brass Quintet replaced the traditional pipe organ.

Gazette: Cooling off – people ate ice creams beforehand in the baking heatCooling off – people ate ice creams beforehand in the baking heat (Image: Daniel Rees, Newsquest)

Some may have wished they could go inside, given the recording lasted from 1.45pm until about 4pm, though many of the singers came prepared with either ice creams or sun umbrellas to repel the heat.

Gazette: Herding cats – BBC staff were doing all they could to organise everything prior to filmingHerding cats – BBC staff were doing all they could to organise everything prior to filming (Image: Daniel Rees, Newsquest)

Colchester Mayor John Jowers, alongside Mayoress Susan, sat in the front row where there was little to no chance of the sun relenting.

Prior to filming, singers, were given strict instructions, even if they were humorously delivered by floor manager, Serena Pinto.

Gazette: Picture perfect – Castle Park looked stunning in full bloomPicture perfect – Castle Park looked stunning in full bloom (Image: Daniel Rees, Newsquest)

“If you feel the unbearable need to cough, don’t,” she told the crown prior to the first recording of For All the Saints.

“And under no circumstances can we show Colchester with empty chairs.”

Gazette: In the shade – some singers preferred to stay underneath a nearby treeIn the shade – some singers preferred to stay underneath a nearby tree (Image: Daniel Rees, Newsquest)

Said empty chairs were then swiftly removed by the production team, who kept a watchful eye on proceedings.

The hymns – some old, some new – were performed in many cases several times to allow the cameras as many angles as possible for the eventual broadcast later this year.

Gazette: On screen – there were about nine cameras filming different angles of the crowd at the Castle Park bandstandOn screen – there were about nine cameras filming different angles of the crowd at the Castle Park bandstand (Image: Daniel Rees, Newsquest)

Some final words of advice: “We will record everything at least twice and will expect the same energy for both takes – so no slacking.”