Researcher, Rip Off Britain - Series 16, Popular Factual, BBC Studios -Salford (10109)

3 x Researcher, Rip Off Britain Series 16

Contract Dates:

 Researcher 1 - 8th January to 20th December
 Researcher 2 – 8th January to 29th November
Researcher 3 – 12th February to 26th July

Band: B
Contract type: Fixed Term / Attachment - Dates above
Location: Salford, Manchester UK

Interviews: w/c 4th December 2023

We actively encourage applications from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds. Please let us know if you require any reasonable adjustments or assistance with your application via the following email address:

Rip Off Britain is the consumer-affairs powerhouse of the BBC Daytime schedule, regularly gaining 1.2m viewers and more than a 30% share of the audience. It mixes incisive consumer investigations, compelling human stories and invaluable advice; it holds to account the companies getting things wrong, leaving people out of pocket, or failing to make things easier for their customers. 
Last year we refreshed and relaunched the familiar Rip Off Britain format, and it’s been a resounding hit with the audience. For series 16 we’ll be building on those changes and we’re looking for people with the skills to deliver investigative, entertaining and valuable consumer affairs stories; find engaging contributors with a story to tell, and come up with creative but appropriate ideas for VTs and for as-live presenter-led items.

•    Finding & developing new consumer stories; speaking in detail to case studies and experts to thoroughly develop the best and most original angle on a story we may have told before.

•    Scrutinising case study records, ensuring the story stands up and is suitably evidenced, with a logical timeline and explanation for events. 

•    Working with Story Producer and VT director(s) to bring the story to life; being the link with contributors from story inception to transmission; ensuring factual accuracy throughout.

•    Working with the wider editorial team to help shape episode themes; suggesting brilliant new experts and ideas for creative treatments in VTs and studio items.

•    Finding and booking multiple contributors for main VTs and the Virtual Advice Clinic

  Past experience of consumer output is not essential, but is preferred. If you’ve not worked on a consumer show before, you must have a strong sense of what makes a great consumer story and why, and you need to appreciate the legal/fairness sensitivities of telling certain stories.
•    An experienced researcher with a background in journalism
•    Exceptional attention to detail and prior experience of fact checking
•    Experience of finding contributors from a wide variety of sources, with a commitment to ensuring breadth of representation.
•    Good writing skills
•    Great phone manner and past experience of sourcing and booking contributors over the phone.
•    Proven ability and experience of working on multiple stories at the same time and effectively managing your time.