Latest news with #schedulechange
The Sun
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
MasterChef in more chaos as it's replaced in schedules just weeks into new series
MASTERCHEF'S turbulent return to the airwaves has continued with a schedule shake-up as the latest hurdle to overcome. The beleaguered BBC has come under fire from accusers of Gregg Wallace for allowing the latest series to be aired, despite 45 claims against the axed host being upheld in a recent report. 3 3 And it's lost a substantial number of viewers compared with last year's series, with 1.96million tuning into the first episode — down from 2.7m for last year's launch show. The current series is slated to air on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday each week, but on Aug 22 it is being dropped in favour of the Women's Rugby World Cup. The BBC is yet to confirm when the postponed episode will be aired. England is hosting the 10th edition of the tournament, which kicks off on Aug 22 and runs until September 27. The home nation will play in the first game against the USA, while reigning champions New Zealand open their account against Spain on the 24th. Despite under-fire hosts Wallace and John Torode - who was axed after an accusation he used a racist term was upheld, despite his strong denial - being edited down in the new series, claimants feel let down by the Corporation. A source told the Mirror: 'There is a feeling the complainants have been ignored and cast aside. It's the BBC burying their head in the sand all over again. There is a lot and lot of anger over this. WhatsApp groups are blowing up.' The first three episodes were released on iPlayer on Wednesday morning, and was then broadcast on BBC One later that evening at 8pm. Wallace was fired after multiple complaints were upheld, including his use of inappropriate sexual language. Torode was then also sacked after it was claimed he had used a racist term. BBC bosses decided to show the latest series because the amateur chefs 'gave their heart and soul' to it. Broadcast union Bectu said showing the episodes could be 'triggering' for people who had complaints upheld. Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy also said this week she would not be watching. Wallace, furious at his treatment by the BBC, previously revealed he would not be tuning in. Asked by The Sun if he will watch it, he said: 'No, no, no, no, never. I'm hurt. "I don't want anything to do with telly. I don't want anything to do with the BBC." Gregg Wallace - MasterChef scandal in Brief GREGG Wallace has stepped down from his MasterChef hosting role after a probe into alleged inappropriate behaviour. But what's the situation? Regular MasterChef host Gregg Wallace is currently the subject of a probe after an investigation was launched into his alleged misconduct over a number of years. Gregg has been accused of making sexual remarks to 13 colleagues including Beeb anchor Kirsty Wark - accusations he denies. The 60-year-old has now stepped away from the BBC show while historical misconduct allegations against him are investigated. Yet the former greengrocer spoke out on social media to blast the "women of a certain age" who he claimed were behind the allegations. The cooking show's production company, Banijay UK, has said law firm Lewis Silkin would lead the investigation into Wallace's alleged misconduct. 3
Daily Mail
31-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Radio 2 loses half a million listeners after Scott Mills replaced Zoe Ball as Breakfast Show host in controversial shake up as fans desert broadcaster for UK's 'fastest growing' new station
BBC Radio 2 has lost half a million listeners since it controversially shook up its weekday schedule. The station had an estimated weekly audience of 12.62million across April to June, figures show, down from 13.11million in the previous three months and from 13.3million this time last year. Scott Mills replaced Zoe Ball as host of the flagship breakfast show in the revamp, which also saw Trevor Nelson given a new afternoon show and DJ Spoony present a late evening Monday to Thursday slot. It is the lowest total for Radio 2 since the method of measuring listeners was introduced by the Radio Joint Audience Research in 2021, following a break during the Covid pandemic. Ms Ball left as breakfast host in January after nearly six years, with Gaby Roslin and Mark Goodier filling in until Mr Mills took over. It saw her salary of £950,000 drop to £515,000 in the latest yearly figures. The breakfast show had an average weekly audience of 6.22million in the three months to June, down from 6.45million in January to March. Radio 2's weekly audience has now fallen by nearly 2million in three years, from an average of 14.53million in April-June 2022 – though it remains comfortably the UK's most popular radio station. Radio 2 challenger Boom Radio, aimed at baby boomers and is now is now the UK's fastest growing commercial station, has recorded a record 711,000 weekly listeners after Ofcom this month blocked BBC attempts to launch a copycat Radio 2 spin-off station. Zoe announced in November that she was leaving her Radio 2 Breakfast Show host to 'focus on family'. The broadcaster, who had taken a mysterious six week absence hosting last summer, shares Woody, 23, and Nelly, 14, with ex husband Norman Cook. Speaking about her departure on her show, Zoe said: ''After six years of fun times alongside you all on the breakfast show, I've decided it's time to step away from the early alarm call and start a new chapter.' The veteran presenter said she was 'thrilled' to reveal her good friend Mill, as her replacement, telling listeners: 'Scott and I go way back to our Radio 1 days, when he was doing early mornings before me. He's been a close friend for years, and I'm beyond thrilled it's him taking over the Breakfast Show. 'Breakfast has always been his dream, and what a year he's had - from racing around the world to his beautiful wedding to Sam. He's not only a blooming brilliant producer but one of the best in radio. I can't wait to tune in on the school run!'. It comes after Ofcom raised concerns with the BBC that the plans for a new station could have a significant adverse effect on competition. The BBC unveiled plans for the new spin-off station in February which will focus on the music of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. This would have come months ahead of the launch of the fully-fledged digital radio station, which is subject to a different regulatory process, including a 'Public Interest Test' consultation. Online stations are not subject to the same scrutiny as proper DAB (Digital Audio Broadcasting) stations. This sparked alarm among commercial rivals that the corporation was planning to plough ahead with the station on BBC Sounds before the plans were properly tested. But it is understood that Ofcom has now blocked the imminent launch of the station on BBC Sounds and directed the corporation to include the online plans in the Public Interest Test. This comes after an internal review by the BBC had reportedly found that the online launch would not have a significant adverse effect on fair and effective competition. Commercial radio stations have complained to both Ofcom and the broadcaster about the plans and about the potential lack of scrutiny over the online launch. There are concerns it would target the listeners of stations like Boom Radio, Greatest Hits and Absolute. Phil Riley, co-founder of Boom Radio, which has successfully appealed to disaffected Radio 2 listeners, said he was 'delighted' Ofcom was telling the BBC to scrutinise the first stage of the launch. He said: 'Our view has always been that this service, even if only delivered on BBC Sounds, represents unfair competition to our fledgling station, with huge risks to our future. 'It deserves the detailed scrutiny that only a full Public Interest Test and subsequent Ofcom BBC Competition Assessment can bring.' He said the BBC had produced 'scant evidence' of the 'public value' of the plans and 'is not what the BBC should be doing'. An Ofcom spokeman said: 'We will publish our decision in the coming days on whether the BBC's plans require a public interest test.' A BBC spokesman said: 'We are surprised to hear commercial radio's comments on what they understand to be Ofcom's decision before this has been published. 'We are respectfully following the right regulatory processes in line with the Charter, Agreement and Ofcom regulation. 'This includes running a detailed Public Interest Test for our music extensions and having an ongoing dialogue with the music industry, Ofcom and our radio industry colleagues. Our plans are distinctive and measured, offering more choice and value to licence fee payers and doing so in a way only the BBC can.' According to sources spin-offs plans for Radio 1 and Radio 3 spin-offs on BBC Sounds have been given the go-ahead.
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Sedgwick County firefighters weigh in on schedule change
PARK CITY, Kan. (KSNW) — A major schedule shift at the Sedgwick County Fire Department is giving firefighters more time with their families. The county switched from a 24-hour shift and 48 hours off to a 48-hour shift and 96 hours off rotation. Firefighters at Station 32 tell me that with the schedule change, there's more time to recover and feel ready to come to work, thanks to more consistent nights of sleep. A couple of months ago, the fire department surveyed its team and found 92 percent of firefighters favored the new schedule. Captain Don Boone for Sedgwick County Fire District 1 has worked under the old schedule for over 20 years. Donors sought for Newton employee facing leukemia 'So you really didn't realize it until we changed to this new schedule. And now it's like after those four days, that first day, I'm ready to go. It kind of refreshes you,' Boone said. Firefighters are at home more mornings since they're at the station two days in a row and get four days off. 'We're seeing right now that overall, a lot of benefits of it. Our personnel are liking it. They get to not commute as much and travel in and out of the station,' Williams said. That's what Boone says he experiences in his day-to-day life. 'With this new schedule, you end up with two days in the in between where you're actually you get to wake up with your family and spend mornings at home with your family. So it's been really beneficial in that way,' Boone said. Leadership says this schedule change does require flexibility in their daily work schedule to not affect response time. 'We've realized when we went to the schedule that we had to be real cognizant to be better at rotating our crews out so that they weren't on long-duration scenes without being switched out,' Williams said. A small price to pay for Boone. Without even the thought of being woken up in the middle of the night. It kind of relaxes you more, and you are able to get better sleep more consecutively at home. That's the big piece of it, you know, because everybody sleeps better at home,' Boone said. The fire chief says he's seeing a reduction in sick leaves in the short amount of time the schedule change has been in effect, as well as an improvement in morale. He also says it's all being done without adding to the budget. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
