The Big-Time Bus [Interior]

Let's take a look inside Blank Reg's Big-Time Television bus. (We know there's two different buses, here we look at the inside of the one primarily used in the television series).

We will proceed from front to back by going in the front right side door which goes directly into the driver's area. Then to your right you will enter the bus.

I have no idea if it was a set or they just filmed on the interior of an actual bus, or even if the interior of the bus is the real interior of any bus we see pictured. It could be a set dressed up to look like a bus interior, a real bus interior taken apart and put together inside a studio (likely) or what but we will examine the interior we see in the show as if it were the actual interior of a real bus.

Once Reg has identified the visitor with his faulty Vidilock, (in the original version, it's a device playing a recorded tape message), you can proceed through the front right side door and into the cab. In the original the door would be on the left side as it was filmed in the UK. We will be looking at the American bus, and throw in a little of both.  Since there aren't many windows on the bus, a Vidilock is actually a good idea, and probably not to hard to put together, after all it's just a video camera which acts as a peephole for security purposes.

A video camera with an intercom which allows the outsider to communicate his intentions. You never know what riffraff out there with bad intentions might want to get a look inside the Big-Time Television studio.

You press the buzzer, look into the cam, and state your intentions and if Reg recognizes you or is in a good mood, he'll let you in.

If you have any decent working retro-tech, he'll be to the front in a jiffy.

The first thing you see in the front is of course the neon BIG-TIME sign just above the entrance way. We will proceed to the right side of the bus and view what appears along the right side interior wall. Immediately to the right on the wall is a sword or scimitar hanging above a chinese restaurant wall calendar. They used to give these out (or charge for them sometimes) and they are either plastic or real bamboo roll-up paintings (usually done at a print shop). While this could be the real thing and not a chinese restaurant replica calendar, we don't think Blank Reg is that rich to have the real thing.  (He could have picked it out of the trash--who knows?)

Down to the right is the "untraceable" Blank-phone. Complete with original retro rotary dial design connected to a Viewphone device which probably also has some sort of software or hardware which makes the call untraceable. Either this blocks the number or works in some more complicated fashion to make it untraceable, who knows. To the right of the Blank-phone is the fridge, old model. Whatever that box is on top of it is both unclear and we never see it again anyways. Above the fridge begins a long shelf which goes all the way along the right side to the rear. Below the shelf are fluorescent lights.

The Blank-Phone

To the right of the fridge is an old fashioned shelf with some canned goods and a drawer.
Below it is a table with a chair, a portable range for heating water in the teapot, a coffee can, and assorted things. This is the 'kitchen table' and sometimes Reg is seen sitting and eating a can of Alphabetti soup. Also above the table is more fluorescent light bulbs, and a framed picture of a sitting cowboy. This picture sometimes moves around the bus in different episodes. The significance of it is a mystery as to who brought it on board, Reg or Dom, and to what significance it really is. There's a lot of weird junk around the bus, this is far from the weirdest thing.

To the right of the picture of the sitting cowboy is a baby picture, a picture of a crowd of people, and there is the chair which Murray is pictured here getting up from. Above all this the shelf with all kind of junk and equipment proceeds along the right side of the bus to the rear. Now to the right of the kitchen table and chair is another worktable where Blank Reg sits and produces/broadcasts "Big-Time Television." Various types of equipment are seen from episode to episode, everything from CB equipment to different kinds of monitors, VCRs, and other misc electronic things.

Here we see what finally ends up being the set-up with a blue-green monitor, a big speaker, a red monitor, and other misc junk which appears from time to time.  Blank Reg sits, speaks into a microphone, plays with a board, puts tapes into VCRs, switches things on and off and plays different things on the monitors. There has to be a camera or view-phone device there somewhere but I don't think there are any closeups of it. He does Vlog or intro videos with his own mug so there must be one there somewhere. Other junk on the workstation are sometimes a pad of paper, and other weird stuff from time to time.

Here we see the camera jutting out. If you look to the front of the bus behind him, there is a hat hanging on a weird coat-of-arms thingie instead of the scimitar. This floats around from episode to episode. The monitors are also not colored in this shot. You can see just part of the front driver's seat way up there in the cab. Reg will sit and play vids and chow on Alphabet Soup at his table which appears to be made of wood. (There's a lot of heavy stuff in this bus, it must be hard on gas mileage for sure...)

Here's a good view from Reg's workstation of the front part we've already looked at.  I have no idea what the big device is on top of the monitor to his left, if you know, let me know! There is his mic, and he sits on a stool, sometimes is can be seen having an old John Deere-type  tractor seat on it.  There is a better look at the wooded table or desk that he sits at. Sometimes it appears lower than pictured here but that could simply be an optical illusion created by camera angles. In the original British version the stations are reversed, with Dominique's desk on the other side.

Here we see the workstation to the very rear of the bus. Lots of junk on the shelf above, here is a different stool than usually seen. To the right of Reg's station is what appears to be a small couch, which is not always there. Sometimes there is a 10-Speed bike. Above it is a collage of a lot of different pictures, mostly of people. I thought I recognized Ed Wood in there, but I can't be sure, there isn't a good clear shot of it. Above that is a neon sign, and above that some sort of electrical gear I have no idea what it is.

Sometimes there are two framed pictures hanging on the back wall, they are vague pieces of some sort of artwork which I can barely see most of the time.  These move around the bus as well. Behind Edison Carter there is what looks like a hanging magazine rack with various weird things and photos on it. Often there is a crutch or pair of crutches leaning up agains the wall next to it.  Above it is a fluorescent light. Sometime a poster on the ceiling can be seen though I cannot see it clearly enough, but it also moves around the bus from time to time.

I have no idea who any of these people are in the collage hanging on the back of the bus wall. Can you identify any of them?

Here the checkerboard coat of arms can be seen with the two vague framed pictures on the back wall.

The "coat of arms" or whatever it is called. If there's some specific name for whatever this thing is let me know!

Here we see the poster on the ceiling, the "magazine rack" as I'm calling it with some photos, possibly records and other things stuck in its slots behind Edison and Reg. Above it the fluorescent light bulb.

The posters on the ceiling move around a bit. There on the left is the "Big-Time" Globe which is always in the same spot.

We will now examine the Left side of the bus and proceed back toward the front, moving along to view Dominique's desk and the junk on the left side of the bus.

The Big-Time globe, crutches and the left side of Dominique's desk. Above on the wall is a plastic red bird of some kind with an electrical cord running to it.

The Big-Time globe sits to the left of Dominique's desk, also there is all kinds of weird junk there sometimes a hula-doll, and random shit. The desk lamp is not always a pink or red light as pictured here. There are some shelves there, pictures and some maps on the wall.

There is some kind of weird sign which says "Flores" on a stand above the shit on her desk. There is a desk lamp, office supplies, an old fashioned typewriter (non-electric I believe) and an inflatable pink palm tree. Sometimes big lighters and ash trays are seen. There is a circular window on the rear left side of the bus.
You will also see a film reel, a street hazard light on top of the filing cabinets to the right of her desk. Candles and other knickknacks adorn the desk.

There we see a map on the wall, and a bird cage (which was also seen in the British version). There is a fluorescent light bulb above the filing cabinets near the entrance.

Dominique often uses a pink feather duster. It can be seen there on the desk to the right of her. This is a decent closeup of the typewriter, but I have not yet figured out the exact model.

She uses a standard old fashioned heavy metal office chair. Everything in this bus is metal, heavy and probably bad for getting good gas mileage.

Here is a shot from Dominique's desk showing the 10-speed bike and the stool with the tractor seat on it.

Dominique sometimes has a television on her desk where she watches the shopping channel.

She also has a mirror and puts on makeup at her desk. On the side of the filing cabinets are two pictures that are also hard to see. The top one looks like half of a freeway overpass.

Here we see above the desk is a map, and to the right next to the wall and filing cabinets is a pole for hanging coats or hats.

Just look at all that junk all over the place!

And back to the front as Reg drives the bus.