Latest news with #JanetStreet-Porter


Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Loose Women's Janet Street-Porter reveals the stars on the chopping block amid brutal ITV cuts - and the panelists who are safe
Journalist Janet Street-Porter has revealed which stars are at risk from brutal cost-saving cuts by ITV - and which panelists are safe. The Loose Women personality is a favourite among viewers at home, best known for her candid honesty and dry wit. Now, the 78-year-old has shed light on the reality behind the looming cuts proposed by the broadcaster, which are set to impact several daytime shows. Janet appears certain that the 'older' Loose Women stars are not likely to be cut, given they appeal more directly to the show's target demographic. But she warns that newcomers, younger stars or those with less experience could be at risk. 'There are no plans to get rid of the older women despite what some people have said,' Janet said. 'In fact, the reverse is true. ITV actually put out a statement saying we are the valued members of the show because the audience totally relates to us.' The Brentford-born writer said the panel programme has gained the trust of female viewers as a place where important female-centred topics are discussed. 'I think Loose Women has become a programme that is trusted by a lot of women because we talk about the issues that they are concerned about - whether it's female health, domestic violence or how politicians don't really understand working women,' she said. 'I think the show has managed to connect women who wouldn't otherwise have a voice. 'And it's delivered with a lot of laughs because we don't take ourselves too seriously.' Janet's comments follow the devastating news that Loose Women producers are expected to cut celebrity guests from the show - and growing fears the ITV staple could even be cancelled within a year. The long-running series usually welcomes a host of celebrities onto the panel to promote upcoming projects and have had the likes of Naomi Campbell, Elizabeth Hurley, Joan Collins, and even former Prime Minster Rishi Sunak appear. But according to insiders, once ITV's budget cuts come into effect in January, Loose Women will no longer have A-list guests in the studio, and the broadcast is planned to only consist of the panel debating newsworthy topics from the week. TV sources have claimed that Loose Women is predicted to be completely cancelled within the year, as viewing figures are expected to drop once the show's quality is reduced. MailOnline revealed that the show has axed their studio audience, an integral part to the programme, which caused upset among several members of the long-standing cast including Nadia Sawalha, Ruth Langsford and Coleen Nolan. In May, ITV announced that Lorraine and Loose Women will only air for 30 weeks a year rather than 52, resulting in more than 220 of 440 staff involved losing their jobs. A TV source revealed: 'Not having guests is a big blow for both the presenters and viewers at home. 'The guests are often one of the highest parts of the show, so it feels like a very strange decision to cut them altogether. Instead, the focus will be on guests for Lorraine and This Morning. 'Behind the scenes the presenters are really upset because they love having guests on and feel they offer a different type of interview to the other daytime shows. 'Firstly, there are four hosts conducting the conversation and secondly, they use their interviews to discuss female focused issues, something shows like This Morning don't do as often. 'It's a real shame that in January, the programme will become a shell of its former self before it is inevitably cancelled altogether.' MailOnline understands that the reason for Loose Women axing celebrity guests is because there simply won't be enough manpower to host visitors and their decision has been to prioritise Lorraine and This Morning, so by default, the panel show will ultimately miss out. An ITV spokesperson added: 'While the team is still working on the show for next year, we can assure you that Loose Women remains a big priority within our daytime slate.' Loose Women airs weekdays on ITV1 from 12:30pm and is available to stream on ITVX .


Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Loose Women star Janet Street-Porter reveals which stars are at risk from brutal ITV cuts
Journalist Janet Street-Porter has revealed which panellists are safe and which ones are at risk amid huge cost-saving cuts at ITV Loose Women favourite Janet Street-Porter has shed light on the looming cuts coming to ITV which are set to impact several daytime shows. Panellist and journalist Janet, 78, has insisted that none of the 'older' Loose Women panellists will be going anywhere, hinting that if jobs are to be cut, it will be the newcomers or younger stars who appear on the ITV show. "There are no plans to get rid of the older women despite of what some people have said," Janet insisted. "In fact, the reserve is true. ITV actually put out a statement saying we are the valued members of the show because the audience totally relates to us." Janet added: "I think Loose Women has become a programme that is trusted by a lot of women because we talk about the issues that they are concerned about - whether it's female health, domestic violence, or how politicians don't really understand working women. "I think the show has managed to connect women who wouldn't otherwise have a voice. And it's delivered with a lot of laughs because we don't take ourselves too seriously," she told Bella. It comes as Loose Women is facing its biggest shake-up in decades, with dramatic changes that have left fans and cast members reeling as insiders fear the ITV favourite could be axed altogether within the next year. The iconic lunchtime chat show, known for its bold debates and A-list guests, is expected to cut celebrity interviews completely from January as part of sweeping budget cuts across ITV Daytime. The move comes just months after bosses announced the show would only air for 30 weeks of the year rather than its usual 52, slashing production time nearly in half. Now, with viewing figures predicted to tumble even further, sources claim Loose Women is 'on borrowed time' as ITV pivots its focus to sister shows Lorraine and This Morning. Over its 25 year history, Loose Women has welcomed some of the world 's biggest stars to the panel - from Naomi Campbell and Janet Jackson to Dame Joan Collins and even former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. But sources claim the show will no longer feature famous faces promoting their projects because there won't be enough staff to manage guests behind the scenes. Instead, those high-profile bookings will now reportedly be prioritised for Lorraine and This Morning, leaving Loose Women to rely solely on its panel discussions of the day's news and lifestyle topics. 'Not having guests is a big blow for both the presenters and viewers at home,' an insider revealed. 'The celebrity interviews are often one of the highlights of the show and bring a unique energy you don't get on other programmes. It feels like a strange decision to cut them altogether.' Behind the scenes, the panel - including long-serving stars like Nadia Sawalha, Ruth Langsford and Coleen Nolan - are said to be 'deeply upset' by the changes. Loose Women has already axed its live studio audience, a move that has left both the panel and crew heartbroken. Nadia Sawalha admitted she was 'totally devastated' at the loss of the audience and spoke out in support of her close friend and warm-up artist Lee Peart, who lost his job as a result. 'The audience is so important for the show,' Nadia said. 'What a lot of people don't realise is that we're self-employed. Every contract is a new contract - I could be let go tomorrow or in five years. It's brutal.' She added: 'Hundreds of people are going to be made redundant out of the blue. A lot of my friends and colleagues on this show and at ITV have been there for decades, and I can't tell you how upsetting it was to see people walking around numb with shock and fear about what they were going to do.' ITV bosses have blamed 'insane inflation' and rising costs for the daytime cuts, which have also seen Lorraine halved to 30 minutes and reduced to term-time broadcasts. In May, ITV confirmed that production of Good Morning Britain will shift to a dedicated team at ITV News, while Loose Women, Lorraine, and This Morning will merge behind-the-scenes teams to save costs. But industry insiders warn that these measures will likely spell the end for Loose Women. An ITV spokesperson said: 'The Loose Women team is still working on the show and its content for next year.' On screen, viewers will see huge changes to the daytime schedule. Lorraine is the worst hit. It will run for 30 weeks, not 50 weeks a year, and will be slashed from an hour to 30 minutes each day. Loose Women will stay at the same running time but will also be cut to 30 weeks. This Morning will remain the same length and frequency. The Loose Women panel, including Coleen Nolan, GK Barry and Frankie Bridge, are also expected to see shifts dwindle, especially those who live outside London and charge for travel and hotels. Glam squads are also expected to be axed with stars expected to use in-house make-up. Meanwhile Good Morning Britain will be extended by 30 minutes, to run from 6am to 9.30am. For the 22 weeks of the year Lorraine is not airing, it will go on until 10am. Speaking about the huge cuts, an insider recently told The Mirror: "It's not a case of viewers seeing less of their shows… it's impossible to see how the high standards will remain the same. "Some staff believe Loose Women and Lorraine in particular will enter a death spiral… it's just so sad. Just a handful of people will be working on each of those two programmes which has huge ramifications for how they are going forward."


Daily Mirror
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Janet Street-Porter addresses Loose Women future as she plans to 'bully ITV boss'
Speaking in a recent podcast episode, Janet Street-Porter detailed how the number of shows would be reduced to the "level it started", but also had some encouraging words for fans Janet Street-Porter has opened up about the future of Loose Women and revealed that she plans to "bully" the boss of ITV Studios. Speaking on the Off Air with Jane and Fi podcast, the panellist shed light on the financial pressures facing ITV, adding that its advertising revenue had been "diminishing hugely". ITV announced in May that it would axe more than 220 jobs and impose cuts to popular shows like Loose Women and Lorraine as it sought to claw back what Janet described as a "massive amount" of savings. When asked to discuss the "fate" of the show, Janet had some encouraging words for fans. She described how the number of shows had risen "inexorably" over the years and would be reduced back to the level it started on. She confirmed the show would air for 30 weeks of the year (or 150 episodes) and revealed that she'd presented her case for the show to Kevin Lygo, the managing director of ITV Studios, whom she knows "very well." Janet said: "So, I've said to him in no uncertain terms what I feel about it, which is that Loose Women performs a valuable service. "It talks about things women are interested in, in a pretty straightforward way. It gives people a bit of a laugh in the middle of the day, doesn't take itself too seriously." When asked if the show would "carry on", she responded: "Yes, course it's carrying on! Of course it's carrying on. It's carrying on for 30 weeks of next year and maybe more if I can bully Kevin Lygo into submission." She added that the bullying was "metaphorically speaking". Following the ITV announcement, fellow panellist Nadia Sawalha described the cuts as "out of the blue" and "absolutely brutal" for people working on the daytime chat show. Opening up on her YouTube channel at the time, Nadia said: "What's been brutal, absolutely brutal, over the last week, honestly I feel tearful about it, is that hundreds of people... are going to be made redundant out of the blue, these are all the people behind the scenes that support us in every way." Meanwhile, reports have emerged this week that the broadcaster plans to step up its cost-cutting strategy further, adding an additional £15 million to the £30 million already announced. ITV said that although the economic environment "remains uncertain," the broadcaster can expect a "better outturn" for the full year 2025, noting that it was "driven by these cost efficiencies." Carolyn McCall, ITV chief executive, said: "ITV is now a leaner, more digital business in a strong position to compete and succeed in a changing market. "We are on track to deliver our 2026 key financial targets, with sustained good growth in ITV Studios and ITVX coupled with strategic cost management as we reshape our cost base to reflect the dynamics of the industry in which we operate."


Daily Mirror
22-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Loose Women panellist Brenda Edwards fears losing her job amid brutal ITV cuts
Loose Women's Brenda Edwards shared her worries about her job amid ITV's budget cuts. The 56-year-old has been a panellist for the talk show since 2019 and hopes to keep her position on the programme to "raise awareness" on multiple topics that are regularly discussed on the show. It comes as ITV revealed Loose Women will be airing for 30 weeks instead of 52 weeks starting from the New Year. Over 220 jobs at the channel are also being cut. Speaking to Women's Own magazine, she said: "You have to move with the times I guess, and I hope this is just an interim thing, and maybe in a few years' time [it will go back to how it was], but we can only wait and see. Google Pixel 9 Pro handset hits low prices "I don't like to make assumptions on anything because I don't know what's happening there but I hope I manage to get some shows and am able to use my platform to raise awareness for whatever I can." She went on to discuss her fellow panellists, admitting she's a "big fan" of Janet Street-Porter and her 'feistiness'. She added: "I just love her feistiness and outspokenness, which I think a lot of us have. She is doing her first-ever tour where she will talk to the audience, and it's going to be fab! "I'm assuming she will talk about everything, including her life, so it will be amazing! We support each other as always. I remember when I was growing up all the women in my family loved Janet and what she stood for." Brenda isn't the only Loose Women star to comment on the move as fellow panellist Nadia Sawalha previously said the ITV budget cuts news came 'out of the blue' and would be 'absolutely brutal' for the show. Speaking on her YouTube channel, she said: 'What's been brutal, absolutely brutal, over the last week, honestly I feel tearful about it, is that hundreds of people... are going to be made redundant out of the blue, these are all the people behind the scenes that support us in every way.' The cuts mean that around 220 out of the 440 staff involved in the programmes would lose their jobs following the decision published in May, reports the Guardian. Whilst Loose Women will stay at the same running time, the number of times it appears on the air will be cut from 52 to 30 weeks. ITV's media and entertainment division Kevin Lygo has said that cutting Loose Women and Lorraine's weeks aligned 'with the lead daytime presenters who host their shows around a seasonal pattern'. He explained: 'Daytime is a really important part of what we do, and these scheduling and production changes will enable us to continue to deliver a schedule providing viewers with the news, debate and discussion they love from the presenters they know and trust, as well generating savings which will allow us to reinvest across the programme budget in other genres.'


Daily Mirror
17-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Loose Women legend slams ITV as she 'confirms' her future
Janet Street-Porter has been one of the longest serving panellists on the show after joining in 2011, and she has now shed light on what the future holds for her on the show Loose Women star Janet Street-Porter has opened up about her future on the hit ITV show amid much upheaval for the programme. Janet Street-Porter first stepped foot onto the Loose Women set back in 2011 and has been a regular on the show ever since. But it wasn't her first foray into the media industry. After going to university to study architecture, she later quit in a bid to get into fashion journalism. After progressing quickly, she was appointed fashion editor of the Daily Mail in her early twenties. Later making the switch to TV, she has, in recent years, been a focal part of the Loose Women panel. Amid significant changes at the show, she now stands as one of its longest-serving panellists. One major change came in May when ITV announced that it would be reducing the show's run from 52 weeks to just 30, starting in 2026. Giving her verdict on the decision, she recently told The Guardian: 'I don't agree with how they've done the cuts.' In light of the news that the show will see a reduction in output, Janet revealed she is certain about where she stands regarding her future on the programme: "Oh, I know I'm going to keep that job. Don't waste your bloody time trying to get a scoop on that.' There have also been reports of several other changes, including the cutting of 220 jobs, the removal of celebrity guests, and the axing of the live audience element. Another star of the show, Nadia Sawalha, shared her thoughts on the loss of the live audience, telling her Coffee Moaning podcast: "From next year there will be no Loose Women audience,' adding, 'I am totally devastated by this fact. I can't get over it at all.' In recent years, the show has introduced a number of new faces, with former Coronation Street star Sue Cleaver now a permanent panellist on the show alongside ex-Love Islander Olivia Attwood. Podcaster GK Barry became the youngest panellist when she joined the show last year. Loose Women is set to return today (July 17) at 12:30 p.m. on ITV.