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Happy second birthday to us.Ìý And Happy Christmas to South Yorkshire.

Loads of work to do yet – but as the editor of magazine just reported – the place is 'buzzing'.

³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ North is now two years old.Ìý And we have just announced our big CBeebies Panto destined for Sheffield.Ìý Oh yes it is...

It doesn’t seem like two years ago since Radio 5 live's was our first live ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ scheduled show from Media City, or since the first was broadcast via a dramatic helicopter landing in the piazza.

We’ve had many strong broadcasting moments since then and long may they continue with your support; whether it’s C³ÉÈËÂÛ̳'s from Tyneside; Radio 4's from Liverpool or from Scarborough for ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Children's – never mind the upcoming from Leeds.

There's a strong array of new, collaborative relationships, crossing all sorts of traditional lines.Ìý It's the MediaCity effect – what we all hoped this place would become – trying to catalyse new content and creativity right across the region.

Independent producers are a big part of this new set of networks and we’ve got some fine neighbours doing good things.

, based in Leeds, also have premises in MediaCity now, supporting their big C³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ factual commissions here too.

have brought Ìýback to the Pie Factory following North East location filming.

And Nicola Shindler’s award-winning moved in to MCUK this week.

Alex Connock’s expanding makes up one of the biggerÌý100+ SMEs (small and medium enterprises) that are part of the wider community here tooÌý– you can see why we’re now buzzing.Ìý

There is also a buzz about the new series of which has started production for ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ One in the studios next door to us.Ìý We have welcomed pop royalty Kylie Minogue and Kaiser Chiefs frontman Ricky Wilson from Leeds as they debut in the spinning chairs.

It's crucial the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ North mission isn't just about Salford.Ìý So far in 2013 there have been 58 productions across Greater Manchester, Salford, Liverpool, Lancashire, the North East, Derbyshire and Yorkshire.

Drama is at the heart of it all. The second series of Sally Wainwright’s BAFTA winning has just finished filming, while ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ One have just started on , a family saga that begins on the morning of the Manchester bomb in June, 1996.Ìý

Starring Phil Glenister and Bernard Hill, and penned by Stockport’s Pete Bowker, the first scenes shot recreate the moment the bomb tore through the City Centre damaging buildings that had been in place for centuries.

From the North East, will soon be back on our screens, a big ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ One costume drama made near Durham.Ìý Also looking stunning is Staithes, on the North Yorkshire coast, the location for , starring Bernard Cribbins as a magical CBeebies storyteller.

It's The Digital Age now of course – and this place is so much more than just radio and TV.Ìý We've got over 400 engineers and technologists building content pipelines for the future – from mobiles to tablets to the interactive red button.Ìý Two of our areas have launched apps this year for smartphones and the results have been stunning.Ìý is a huge and the is hot on its heels with hundreds of thousands of new downloads in the month since it launched.Ìý

Available now – both free – and full of Northern innovation.

Finally, talking of big new ideas, ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Radio 3 have come up with a dramatic, musical twist to support this year with the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Philharmonic and the Halle orchestras fighting it out inÌýa classically-inspired girls v boys .

Fans can downloadÌýthe songs from Monday 14 October, remixed like they've never heard them before, and raise money for Children in Need.

Great fun, lovely idea and all going to a great charity that spends money right across the North of England too – from Newcastle to Hull, Cumbria to Cheshire.Ìý I can't think of a better way to serve our audiences.

is Director, ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ North.