ITV to Undergo Major Daytime Schedule Overhaul, Resulting in Over 220 Redundancies
ITV has announced plans to dramatically revamp its daytime schedule, scaling back airtime devoted to popular shows such as Loose Women and Lorraine, according to a report from Deadline. The sweeping changes will result in over 220 redundancies, with the company promising to reinvest all savings into more streaming-friendly content, including drama and sport.
The 220 redundancies represent around half of the 450 employees who produce output across ITV Studios-made Good Morning Britain, Lorraine, This Morning, and Loose Women, Deadline reports. Major broadcast networks are re-evaluating their schedules as viewers increasingly turn to online content. Topical daytime shows are expensive to produce and do not have the same online shelf-life as big-ticket dramas and documentaries, making them a prime target for scaling back.
Under the plans, ITV will reduce the airtime of Loose Women and Lorraine by at least 42%, moving from a 52-week broadcast schedule to 30 weeks. Additionally, Lorraine’s run time will be halved to 30 minutes. These changes are set to come into force in January 2026, Deadline confirms.
In a bid to improve efficiency, ITV is planning to move Good Morning Britain to ITN, which produces ITV News. GMB will be produced by a dedicated team at ITV News and will be extended by 30 minutes during the weeks Lorraine is not on air. This move aims to reduce overlap between the two services and improve newsgathering.
Despite the significant changes, ITV Studios will continue to produce Lorraine, This Morning, and Loose Women, albeit under a combined team rather than having three dedicated production operations. The shows will also relocate from Television Centre, White City, to a central London location.
Kevin Lygo, managing director of ITV’s Media and Entertainment Division, commented on the changes, stating: “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.” He also acknowledged the impact on staff, adding: “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,” Deadline reports.
As the media landscape continues to shift towards online content, ITV’s overhaul of its daytime schedule is just the latest example of broadcasters adapting to changing viewer habits. With a focus on reinvesting in more streaming-friendly content, ITV aims to remain a major player in the industry, but at what cost to its staff and traditional programming? Only time will tell.
The changes to ITV’s daytime schedule have sparked concerns about the future of traditional daytime television, with many industry experts weighing in on the potential impact on the sector. As reported by Deadline, the overhaul is just one example of the significant changes underway in the media industry as companies strive to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving landscape.
In related news, industry analysts are predicting a significant shift in the way broadcasters approach content production in the coming years, with a growing emphasis on streaming-friendly content and online engagement. As ITV continues to adapt to these changes, it remains to be seen how other broadcasters will respond to the shifting media landscape.
For more information on the changes to ITV’s daytime schedule and the impact on staff, readers can refer to the original report from Deadline.
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