If you are not already familiar with compliance requirements imposed on you by the broadcaster for which you are making your programme, rather than on it by the regulator, you should make sure that you get details of any that may exist before you embark on the production: it is a great deal easier to conform with the rules from the start than it is to correct the results of an inadvertent breach after the event.

The main tool used by broadcasters to ensure compliance and to gather essential management information is the Programme as Completed form (this may include billing information and details of the music used in the programme, or these may be the subject of separate forms). The forms used by the BBC, Meridian Television and Channel 4 appear under three other icons at the end of this page. The Channel

4 form is accompanied by guidelines produced for producers by the Channel. Again, it is wise to familiarise yourself with the requirements of the PasC form before you start production: it is a lot easier to assemble the information you need as the production proceeds, rather than to have to scrabble back for it when the programme is finished.

Defamation: Under another of the icons at the end of this page, you will find a brief lay person’s guide to the pitfalls of defamation law. It is not designed to answer all your questions, but reading it should alert you to the questions arising from your programme on which you may need to ask for expert advice.