Latest news with #KevinLygo
BBC News
3 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Loose Women's Nadia Sawalha brands ITV cuts 'absolutely brutal'
Loose Women panellist Nadia Sawalha has said ITV's cuts to its daytime schedule came "out of the blue" and have been "absolutely brutal" for those working on the announced last week it was axing more than 220 jobs and making cuts to shows including Loose Women and on her YouTube channel, Sawalha 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."There have been reports that the pool of panellists will be reduced, and Sawalha said she "could be let go tomorrow, [or] I could be let go in five years". In an annoucnement last week, ITV boss Kevin Lygo stressed that daytime is "a really important part" of its programming, and said he recognised that the plans "will have an impact on staff". In her video, Sawalha, who has also appeared in EastEnders, Dancing on Ice and The Bill, said Loose Women and Lorraine had been "highly successful", but that she accepted inflation was "insane, and cuts have to be made", before becoming emotional."Behind the scenes there are people that are really suffering, and what you don't realise is when you attack the show you attack them, because you never see all the army of people behind the scenes and how hard they work," she said."So to all my friends and colleagues behind the scenes that have just got a huge shock out of the blue, I'm so sorry."She added that she thought some conversations about the cuts had been "misogynistic", stressing the impact of the cuts on many of her friends and colleagues on the show, who have worked there for decades. "I can't tell you how upsetting it was to see people walking around numb with shock and fear about what they are going to do... [when] television is coming very slowly to its natural end."Speaking from her own perspective, she added: "What people don't realise at Loose Women is that we're self-employed. I am self-employed. Every contract is a new contract."I could be let go tomorrow, I could be let go in five years, you don't know because we're not employees." 'Impact on off-screen staff' Under the changes, Loose Women and Lorraine will be broadcast for 30 weeks out of 52. Lorraine Kelly's morning show will also reduce from an hour to 30 ITV did not comment on Sawalha's views, they referred to Lygo's comments about the cuts in last week's announcement."I recognise that our plans will have an impact on staff off-screen in our Daytime production teams, and we will work with ITV Studios and ITN as they manage these changes to produce the shows differently from next year, and support them through this transition," ITV's managing director of media and entertainment said. "Daytime has been a core element of ITV's schedule for over 40 years and these changes will set ITV up to continue to bring viewers award winning news, views and discussion as we enter our eighth decade."During weeks when Lorraine is not on air, Good Morning Britain will extend by half an hour, from 06:00 BST to 10:00 BST. This Morning will stay in its slot on weekdays across the February, ITV announced that soaps Coronation Street and Emmerdale would see their content cut by an hour a week between them from next this month, ITV chief executive Dame Carolyn McCall said the company was making "good progress" on a cost-cutting drive, and that she expected to make £30m non-content savings during the past few years, there has been a downturn in advertising revenue, part of a funding squeeze throughout the TV industry.
Scotsman
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Good Morning Britain: ITV to make huge change to show
Good Morning Britain is being extended in 2026 in a major overhaul 😱 Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Good Morning Britain to be extended by 30 minutes every day. ITV is overhauling its daytime TV schedule in 2026. But what will be changing? Good Morning Britain is about to undergo the biggest change in its 11-years on TV. ITV has announced huge new plans for its daytime television schedule from early 2026. Next year is set to be quite the year for the broadcaster with a shake-up of its soaps also set from January. Emmerdale and Coronation Street will also be crossing over for the first time. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad ITV has confirmed that it will be overhauling its daily schedule and it will impact Good Morning Britain and Lorraine. Here's all you need to know: Good Morning Britain set for massive change in 2026. Good Morning Britain will be extended in 2026 | Ray Burmiston/ ITV They say you can't have too much of a good thing and ITV looks set to put that to the test. GMB is going to last for at least an extra 30 minutes each day from January 2026. It will run from 6am to 9.30am daily - and from 6am to 10am on many occasions. The broadcaster has also announced that it will be produced by ITV News at ITN after the switch. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The move will see ITV move all its national news gathering into one hub, with Good Morning Britain benefitting from the 'journalistic and production resources already in place for national news bulletins', according to the broadcaster. Kevin Lygo, Managing Director of ITV's Media and Entertainment Division, explained the changes: '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. 'These changes also allow us to consolidate our news operations and expand our national, international and regional news output and to build upon our proud history of trusted journalism at a time when our viewers need accurate, unbiased news coverage more than ever.' The expanded Good Morning Britain will continue its mix of news, interviews, debate and competitions while allowing for the inclusion of more regional news, more agenda-setting investigations and exclusives and more reporting on and analysis of the biggest stories of the day around the UK and the world, according to ITV. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Lorraine and Loose Women set for changes in 2026 Lorraine, This Morning and Loose Women will continue to be produced by ITV Studios and will be broadcast from a new location in central London, the broadcaster said. However it did say that ITV Studios is consulting with its Daytime teams about a proposal that from 2026 would see the three editorially distinct shows produced by one team sharing resources and operations. In ITV's 2026 Daytime schedule, Lorraine will run from 9.30am-10am, on a seasonal basis for 30 weeks of the year. During the weeks Lorraine is not on air, Good Morning Britain will run from 6am to 10am. This Morning will remain in its 10am-12.30pm slot on weekdays throughout the year, while Loose Women will be in the 12.30-1.30pm slot, again on a seasonal basis for 30 weeks of the year - the schedule it occupied for over a decade until 2016. Kevin Lygo added: 'I recognise that our plans will have an impact on staff off screen in our Daytime production teams, and we will work with ITV Studios and ITN as they manage these changes to produce the shows differently from next year, and support them through this transition. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Daytime has been a core element of ITV's schedule for over 40 years and these changes will set ITV up to continue to bring viewers award winning news, views and discussion as we enter our eighth decade.' Have you got a story you want to share with our readers? You can now send it to us online via YourWorld at . It's free to use and, once checked, your story will appear on our website and, space allowing, in our newspapers.
Daily Record
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Record
Lorraine Kelly taking 'extreme measures' to save show's future amid ITV bloodbath
Lorraine Kelly is willing to 'pull out all the stops' to save her ITV programme amid the recent announcement that her airtime is being halved, according to insiders. Lorraine Kelly is reportedly fighting to save the future of her long-term ITV show. Sources claim that the 65-year-old Scots presenter will have to "pull out all the stops" for the programme, which is facing major cuts, to survive. Lorraine will not only air 30 weeks of the year with episodes cut down from an hour to 30 minutes going forward. An insider said: 'Lorraine was not happy about what is happening and also had concern for the production team which will be cut back too. 'But the truth is she has to roll her sleeves up and work harder on her own show than she has in recent years, otherwise the long-term future does not look good. She has been an icon of ITV but serious cuts need to be made and her show has been cut to just 30 minutes, which after ad breaks will be a very short chunk of time. "She needs to show bosses it is worth keeping on air. You can expect her to be pulling hard to get big name celebrities on her show instead of GMB or This Morning." Lorraine was informed her show was being cut back during a tense private meeting with bosses and will now need to work five days a week to be in with a chance of keeping her programme on air long term. ITV staff working on daytime were told in a meeting on Tuesday that half of the 440 production are going to be let go, the Mirror reports. However, boss Kevin Lygo arranged for Lorraine to be told separately in the days before. Lorraine has been a regular face on screens for 40 years, appearing on GMTV and Good Morning Britain before she started her own show in 2010. However, she has recently not been hosting Friday episodes, with Christine Lampard and Ranvir Singh filling in. Last week Lorraine returned to the screen after undergoing surgery to remove her ovaries, which she discussed on screen. During her on and off absence, the show's audience numbers are said to have peaked as an insider said: 'February, March and April celebrated the highest viewing figures for three years. The show reaches 1.1 million every day and 2.7 million every week.' The ITV cuts will also impact other daytime shows, with Loose Women rumoured to be losing up to 10 of its 29 panellists. Good Morning Britain is also facing cuts but one contestant who is said to be safe is Susanna Reid. A source said: 'She is someone ITV want to build the show around and is seen as an essential part of daytime. She is 100% safe from the cuts.' Hundreds of staff are now in a consultation process at ITV. A spokesman said: 'At a time when our daytime teams are undergoing a period of change we will not comment on speculation around talent or staff contracts. 'Our intention is to keep our daytime shows as familiar to viewers as possible which includes seeing presenters they know and love.'
Daily Mirror
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Lorraine Kelly takes drastic measure to save show amid ITV bloodbath
ITV star Lorraine Kelly is willing to pull out all the stops to save her daytime show amid severe cuts at the broadcaster Lorraine Kelly, 65, is fighting to save the long-term future of her show. Insiders say the TV presenter – whose programme faces major cuts in an ITV cost drive – will have to 'pull out all the stops' for it to survive. Lorraine will now air only 30 weeks a year instead of all year, with episodes cut to 30 minutes from an hour. A source said: 'Lorraine was not happy about what is happening and also had concern for the production team which will be cut back too. 'But the truth is she has to roll her sleeves up and work harder on her own show than she has in recent years, otherwise the long-term future does not look good. She has been an icon of ITV but serious cuts need to be made and her show has been cut to just 30 minutes, which after ad breaks will be a very short chunk of time. "She needs to show bosses it is worth keeping on air. You can expect her to be pulling hard to get big name celebrities on her show instead of GMB or This Morning.' Lorraine was told her show was being cut back in a tense private meeting with bosses – and will now need to work five days a week to have a chance of keeping it on air long term. ITV staff working on daytime were told in a meeting on Tuesday that half of the 440 production staff will go. But boss Kevin Lygo arranged for Lorraine to be told separately in the days before. Lorraine has been a telly regular for 40 years, on GMTV and Good Morning Britain before her own show in 2010. However, she has not been hosting Friday episodes, with Christine Lampard and Ranvir Singh filling in. Last week staff Lorraine returned after surgery to remove her ovaries, which she discussed on screen. A source close to the show said: 'February, March and April celebrated the highest viewing figures for three years. The show reaches 1.1 million every day and 2.7 million every week.' The ITV cuts will also affect other daytime shows, with Loose Women rumoured to be losing up to 10 of its 26 panellists. Good Morning Britain also faces cuts but one constant will be Susanna Reid. A source said: 'She is someone ITV want to build the show around and is seen as an essential part of daytime. She is 100% safe from the cuts.' Hundreds of staff are now in a consultation process at ITV. An ITV spokesman said: 'At a time when our daytime teams are undergoing a period of change we will not comment on speculation around talent or staff contracts. 'Our intention is to keep our daytime shows as familiar to viewers as possible which includes seeing presenters they know and love.'
Daily Record
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Record
Lorraine's tearful ITV staff 'fear for her future' after 'kick in the teeth' news on cuts
Lorraine staff have been left devastated by the scale of job losses set to hit the programme as the programme prepares to be slashed from an hour to 30 minutes Staff on Lorraine are worried that the popular presenter might leave the programme as it faces the impact of extensive ITV cuts. Lorraine has been deeply affected by the extent of job losses coming to the show, which is also due to be cut from an hour to 30 minutes and will now broadcast only for 30 weeks a year. Although ITV's Kevin Lygo has assured that presenters will not change for all programmes under the axe, concerns are reportedly mounting amongst the staff. A source revealed: "There are genuine fears among staff that Lorraine may decide to walk if the quality of the show they are putting out declines. It's hard to see how standards won't there are questions over whether Lorraine will want to be associated with that. Lorraine and her team are perfectionists - it's why the show is loved by so many." The decision feels like a "kick in the teeth", especially because ITV boasted this week about the show reaching its highest viewership in four years, reports the Mirror. Another insider commented, "This is a presenter who has just come back from having an operation, has won a BAFTA, is enjoying record then ITV show their appreciation by yanking her off air half the year. Staff are beside themselves, and have been in tears constantly. It doesn't make any sense given the trajectory the show is on." We have contacted Lorraine representatives for further comment. ITV plans to cut a total of 220 jobs in a bid to save as much as £50 million. Sources revealed a "collective devastation" after being summoned to an all-staff meeting yesterday, where they were informed that nearly half of the 450 jobs in ITV Daytime would be axed. The restructuring will see the savings "reinvested" into other programming with an emphasis on drama, sport, entertainment and reality shows. From January 2026, Loose Women will also adopt a "seasonal" schedule of 30 weeks a year, a reduction of more than 10 weeks from the current schedule but a return to the pattern it held for over a decade before 2016. ITV's news provider ITN is set to take over production of Good Morning Britain from next year as part of the significant revamp of the channel's long-standing daytime brands. GMB will be relocated within ITN's Gray's Inn Road headquarters and extended by half an hour for 30 weeks of the year (6am - 9.30am), and by an hour for the remaining 22 weeks when Lorraine is now off air (6am - 10am). The changes aim to allow GMB to benefit from "the journalistic and production resources already in place for national news bulletins". The extra hours each week will be filled with additional regional news, investigations and analysis of the day's biggest stories. Staff reacted with widespread dismay to the massive number of job cuts. The current Good Morning Britain team was particularly hard hit - of the 133 employees who currently produce the early-bird magazine show, hosted by Susanna Reid, Richard Madeley and Ed Balls, just 38 will make the transition to ITN. An insider revealed: "The devastation among the staff is palpable after the announcement. To say it blindsided them would be an understatement." They continued: "There had been whispers going round for some time over a merger between ITV News and Good Morning Britain, but no indication that the Daytime shows would be affected. "We still don't know how many people are going to lose their jobs, but rumours around 50% of the entire staff from GMB, Lorraine and This Morning will be affected which is staggering. "All of the shows are produced by teams of super dedicated professionals, everyone is completely devastated." Despite the upheaval, This Morning will keep its regular 10am -12.30pm weekday spot. The studios producing Lorraine, This Morning, and Loose Women, all part of ITV Studios, are set for relocation to central London. Lorraine Kelly celebrated her 40th year in broadcasting last year and received a special BAFTA; she will now host her programme five days a week instead of four. Her stand-ins, Christine Lampard and Ranvir Singh, who also take turns on GMB and Loose Women, respectively, will remain essential members of the ITV Daytime team. Kevin Lygo, ITV media and entertainment managing director, has emphasised the need for cost-cutting amid soaring expenditures, whilst ensuring on-air talent remains. 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." He further detailed the plans for ITV's news consolidation: "These changes also allow us to consolidate our news operations and expand our national, international and regional news output and to build upon our proud history of trusted journalism at a time when our viewers need accurate, unbiased news coverage more than ever." ITV outlined that the savings would support exciting projects such as the upcoming drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office, significant sports broadcasts including next year's football World Cup, and various reality and entertainment programmes. In addition, Lygo commented on the durability of the daytime segment: "Daytime has been a core element of ITV's schedule for over 40 years and these changes will set ITV up to continue to bring viewers award winning news, views and discussion as we enter our eighth decade." These adjustments are also included in ITV's latest five-year agreement with ITN for the provision of national, international, London, and digital news services.
