What's it like to chair a live political TV debate?

Nick Servini sits in front of Your Voice, Your Vote branding. He wears a suit and tie.
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Nick Servini will host the Your Voice, Your Vote Caerphilly by-election debate

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On Wednesday night on BBC One Wales there will be an hour of lies, betrayal and machinations.

It will be my job to make sure this is strictly confined to The Celebrity Traitors and not to the Your Voice, Your Vote Caerphilly by-election debate that will be gracing your screens for 60-minutes earlier in the evening.

It could be easier said than done. OK - lies and betrayal may be a bit much, but there may be plenty of old-school political manoeuvring going on.

After all, there is a lot at stake for the six candidates appearing in front of a live audience of 80 people in our Caerphilly constituency location, and many thousands more sitting at home.

The six candidates taking part in the debate are those who represent parties which have clear evidence of electoral support in Caerphilly, taking account of past elections there, as well as where opinion polls in Wales are at the moment.

The other two candidates will be appearing on BBC Wales Today just before the debate, and you can see the profiles and policies of all eight candidates here.

One of the big questions for me is how they are all likely to frame the debate.

It is a famous American mantra that all politics is local.

True, up to a point, but I would expect it to be tested to the full in the debate.

After all, by-elections are funny old things. They can be hyper-local personality-led affairs or big-picture barometers of the state of the nation.

This one feels like the latter rather than the former.

Born out of the death of the popular Hefin David, the vote is far more than about finding a replacement Senedd Member for a matter of months before the Welsh election in the spring.

This feels like the unofficial starting gun on a campaign that is already gripping the imagination, and the column inches of London-based newspapers, in a way that we have failed to see in 26 years of Welsh devolution.

It is easy to see why. The results of the polls, suggesting Plaid, Reform and Labour are now vying for the lead, has lit the blue touch paper.

A picture of Hefin David, who is wearing a suit, has black-rimmed glasses, dark hair and a dark beard, stood in front of the Senedd building.Image source, PA Media
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Hefin David was popular with members of all parties in Cardiff Bay

I doubt whether the constituency has ever witnessed such a degree of attention as it is getting now.

For the winner, it will generate that precious commodity which all political parties crave: momentum.

For the losers, it should provide some critically-important lessons of where they sit with the public mood and how their messages are landing on the doorstep.

They will have to learn fast, as coming down the track is an election in May with a new voting system, new giant constituencies and an expanded Senedd.

This will be the last time the Caerphilly constituency in its current form will ever be fought over for the Senedd.

For the rest of us it will be provide some concrete intelligence to get a sense of the public mood in Wales.

Caerphilly Castle with a blue sky and clouds overhead, overlooking a moat. Two Welsh flags can be seen flying from the building.Image source, Getty Images
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The by-election will take place on 23 October

'Pressure to perform'

So a week before polling day, in the middle of a febrile time in politics, I will be heading to Caerphilly to chair a debate with all of those vying for votes.

I genuinely do not know what to expect: something enlightening or bruising? Civilised or rude? Local or national? Some or all of these things?

No doubt the services provided by Caerphilly council will play their part but with such a national focus, wider issues such as immigration and the cost of living are bound to feature.

The audience will be drawn from a mix of all of the parties.

They have been invited to think about what questions they want to put to the candidates.

My role is to allow proceedings to hit the elusive sweet spot of ensuring everyone has a fair crack, while at the same time allowing as free-flowing a debate as possible.

Believe me, it is not easy when there is pressure to perform on the individuals, and the parties who all know a good result in Caerphilly gives them an early boost as we march towards the spring of 2026.

Let battle commence, or as Claudia Winkleman might say: "Players welcome, here there is no special treatment."

BBC Wales is holding a live debate for the candidates of the Caerphilly by-election on 15 October. You can follow the debate live on the BBC News website's Wales page, where a live stream and real-time updates will be available.

The debate will also be broadcast on BBC One Wales and BBC iPlayer.

Click below to apply to be in the audience.

Get in touch

Join the BBC Wales Caerphilly by-election debate audience

Who are the candidates in the Caerphilly by-election?

The full list of nominees are:

Liberal Democrats: Steve Aicheler

Gwlad: Anthony Cook

Greens: Gareth Hughes

Conservatives: Gareth Potter

Reform: Llyr Powell

UKIP: Roger Quilliam

Labour: Richard Tunnicliffe

Plaid Cymru: Lindsay Whittle

You can find out more about the candidates here.

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