DON’T FORGET BBC AND CHANNEL 5 STILL STAND STRONG: What’s behind ITV’s Biggest Staff Purge in History? What’s the Fate of the Presenters? Will Shortened Shows still Captivate? A New Era Begins, or Is this the Calm before a Sh0cking TV Collapse?
THE ITV massacre is possibly the worst decision bosses could have made for viewers and stars on TV.
Sadly, all it proves is that telly execs may not care about good content, indeed they only care about one thing – money.
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The ITV shakeup is bad news for both the stars and also the viewersCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
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Lorraine will now only present her show for half an hour at a time, 30 weeks a yearCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
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This Morning will move to a new location completely with a streamlined and shared team with other showsCredit: Rex
Yesterday, I chatted to a number of my former colleagues at Good Morning Britain and it was heartbreaking to hear a general consensus of how devastated the team were after the crisis talks.
Working on the show back in 2022, I can personally attest to seeing the fantastic and dedicated team first hand.
This was a hub of creativity, determination, drive and a passion for making brilliant television.
What makes Good Morning Britain so special as a show is the light and shade it provides.
In recent weeks, we could see topical and specialist reporting on world events like Trump’s deals and the conclave election of the new pope.
A few minutes later, we would see Richard Arnold give a slick and well produced update on Peppa Pig’s new sibling.
ITV News is a fantastic and well produced operation and without a doubt, there is always a place for news.
However, GMB is a very different operation and streamlining it with the harder news company at ITN might rid the very soul of what makes the show so brilliant in the first place.
A programme like that needs light and shade and I fear that without the fun elements, even more viewers might switch to Sally and Jon on BBC One.
While it’s been reported that some of the main talent like Susanna Reid and Kate Garraway have been promised that their jobs are safe, the same cannot be said for those behind the scenes.
ITV Daytime Shake-Up: Major Changes to Lorraine and Loose Women Revealed
I cannot help but think this is almost a representation of the entire industry.
While the talent in front of the camera who are paid thousands are well looked after, it’s those slaving away for 10 hours (or more) behind the scenes that are cast out into the cold, even though it is mainly them that make the magic happen.
And it shows with the rest of the schedule… Lorraine being cut down to just 30 minutes of airtime must feel like an insult to a presenter that has given years of her life to the industry.
Her brilliant team produce a lifestyle based show which has been a staple of the breakfast offering for the last four decades – a beloved tradition that steps back all the way to TV-AM.
ITV show feuds
AFTER fans claimed Judi Love snubbed Lorraine Kelly’s Bafta win, we take a look at a few more
Lorraine Kelly and Judi Love, 2024: Bafta viewers claimed Judi looked less than impressed when Lorraine collected her gong to mark 30-years of service to daytime telly
Ruth Langsford and Phillip Schofield, 2019: The feud was started when Ruth made an official complaint against Phil while eight other ITV presenters spoke out about what they described as a “toxic” environment at This Morning.
It escalated during the same year when Phillip rudely interrupted her while she was presenting a preview of Loose Women during an episode of This Morning, with Phil later sacked from the show in 2023.
Holly Willoughby and Phil Schofield, 2023: Back in 2023 The Sun revealed how the pair were “barely speaking” off-camera, something which escalated when Phil’s affair with a show runner was exposed
It is also the most popular and inoffensive show out of the whole roster of programmes.
By cutting back both the time and the amount of shows that will air, it suggests that ITV is ready to diminish the importance of popular content like that.
It reminds me of the approach of Coronation Street, culling legendary characters behind the scenes just for short term storylines that might not even work – and viewers won’t be happy.
Then there’s Loose Women, where there was absolutely no need to cut back on the amount of shows at all, especially after it was just nominated for its second consecutive BAFTA.
I cannot help but think this is almost a representation of the entire industry.
The team over at White City’s TV Centre still pulls in hundreds of thousands of viewers every day and is one of the most popular shows on daytime.
Where am I going to get my daily fix of Ruth Langsford, Jane Moore, Brenda Edwards and Denise Welch if it’s only being shown ‘seasonally.’
Of course there is the point that paying four established presenters for a full panel show broadcast at a time is four times the salary of what the lineup of a show like This Morning would cost.
Meanwhile, if the plans are what they seem to be, Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley’s offering will be the only show that would still be recognisable.
Peppa Pig’s Mummy Pig gives birth to third baby as GMB reveals first pic and piglet’s sweet name
But arguably, this is the show that faces the most competition as BBC Morning Live continues to be on the rise – especially if their most recent BAFTA nomination is anything to go by.
Many think that the studio in the old BBC headquarters is still haunted by the ghost of the lost partnership of Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby.
If they want to win viewers back, they may need to take a more consumer-based approach.
Keep the staple segments like fashion, food, showbiz and advice, and if they focus less on astrology and more on consumer-based segments then they might be onto a winner.
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Shows like Good Morning Britain need both serious and light hearted momentsCredit: ITV
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The changes threaten to rip out the full soul and tradition of ITV’s Daytime outputCredit: Rex
If they are going to win the audience back over, their participation is important and it might be a good idea to get viewers more involved in the ‘Morning View’ news review segments.
These shows need cultivating, not cutbacks and I fear that the bosses will save money in the short term, whilst crippling the offering in the long term.
Speaking of which, there could be an unexpected potential other winner in this saga, and that is Channel 5 (now known simply as 5) with its brilliant daytime offering.
The other commercial channel has really upped the ante on their own topical daytime offering.
If This Morning wants to win viewers back, they may need to take a more consumer-based approach
Veteran broadcaster Jeremy Vine usually takes to the airwaves for a brilliant show of news debates with big name political personalities.
Storm Huntley follows with more of a topical feel with subjects that focus on useful life hacks.
Then we have the brilliant Vanessa Feltz with her hard-hitting human interest debates and celebrity gossip we all want to hear.
But what 5 does so well is the fact that all of its programmes are focused on the viewer and the audience is invited to have their say live on air.
It’s the perfect mixture of traditional linear television done well combined with the uncensored and approachable feel of live radio.
You could easily call up and speak to a national treasure like Vanessa and her gang of friends on a topic that you really care about which has a direct effect on your life.
Channel 5 is investing in its daytime output just at the right time, just as ITV has exposed its Achilles heel.
There is still a home for viewers on one channel, but the question is … where?
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Loose Women was at the top of its game with BAFTA nominationsCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
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It seems bosses just don’t want to pay for as many stars on screenCredit: ITV
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Channel 5 have a brilliant daytime offering of their own which could really threaten ITVCredit: Getty
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Viewers can chat directly to a national treasure like Vanessa FeltzCredit: Channel 5
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I fear the cutbacks will only make more viewers switch over to other channels
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