³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

Although each discipline requires detailed preparation by the riders, it's the cross country which exercises the thoughts of the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ production team most. With horses setting off every four minutes, there could be up to four horses on the course at any one time.

With 12 cameras to choose from, there is good coverage of almost every fence on , but there are still some blind spots. We get around that by having videotape machines recording all the action from each camera. It's a brave producer that says we shouldn't miss anything, but that's the aim.

I've worked on Badminton for six years now, but taking on the director's duties for the first time is Kate McKeag. Kate has worked on the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ's golf coverage for many years, so having a course of four miles and many things happening at once is nothing new for her, but as we both realise, , William Fox-Pitt or Mary King in full flight move rather faster than Tiger Woods.

Kate and I have made several visits to Badminton since last autumn, planning where to put the cameras.

On our first visit, Hugh Thomas, the director of Badminton Horse Trials took us round the track and gave us his initial plans for the course. At that stage there were no fences and, in some cases, Hugh still had a few options in mind.

What has been clear since our first visit in November was just how much work has been going into , after the problems last year when many horses pulled out before the cross country. It looks like a really lovely track and I don't think there will be any complaints from the riders.

By the time we returned in February, the plans for the fences were much more fixed and many of them were beginning to take shape. There was still a fair amount of imagination required, but that is when we made firm plans about where we would put our cameras - where they are located varies tremendously. One will be high in the air above the finish on a large hoist, another on the back of a quad bike which will travel alongside the horse and rider as they tackle the sting of fences that go back and forth across the Vicarage Ditch.

Some cameras are on long swinging arms that can swoop high or low and at some fences we build a scaffold platform to get a view over the heads of the huge crowds that flock to Badminton every year.

Guiding Kate and me through all of this is our experienced Engineering Manager, Robin Stonestreet who leads the outside broadcast team that rigs and operates all the cameras, sound and videotape equipment that will make this weekend's coverage possible. It's a remarkable set-up that is built from nothing in the space of a week and dismantled even quicker. Speaking as a man who struggles to change a plug, I'm never anything less than amazed at the ability to build a whole TV operation in the middle of a field.

Last week, we had a final look around the course. Most of the fences were completed with just the flags to add. The operation to install miles and miles of string that will keep spectators and horses apart was well underway.

The tented village was nearly ready to welcome the many trade stands. And the final touches were being put to the Grandstand that will hold 15,000 spectators on Sunday afternoon. It really whets the appetite for one of my favourite events of the year, but does focus the mind on how close we are.

Plans are in good shape for entertaining coverage this weekend. Clare Balding is filming the preview for this year's programme. It's no shock to hear that it features Zara Phillips who will be aiming to complete Badminton for the first time, but we'll also be trying to work out who else will be on the plane to Hong Kong for the Olympics.

Maybe Tina Cook will make it there on the GB team. This weekend she combines two things she's very good at - as well as guiding First Flight through the competition, she will also be commentating for us. Her placing after cross country will give us a few logistical issues to work through for Sunday, but it's great to have her on the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ team.

Update 30/4/08: Tina has unfortunately had to pull out of the event but will still be providing expert opinion on our commentary team.

Leading the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ commentary team, as he has done for many years, will be Mike Tucker. Mike has already been busy taking Hugh Thomas round the course and getting the view of the man who designed the course. You can see that on the . It's a great site to keep up to date with all the latest news and results. And of course the will have all the latest video, including live streaming of Saturday's cross country.

So whether you tune into the red button or the website on Saturday from 11am or wait for Sunday's ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ TWO programme at 1pm, I hope you enjoy .