Lorraine and Loose Women axed for HALF A YEAR in ’emergency’ ITV shakeup
ITV has announced a slew of major cuts to its daytime programming schedule, with Lorraine Kelly‘s popular morning show bearing the brunt of the changes.
The veteran presenter’s programme will now only air for 30 weeks of the year and has been reduced to just 30 minutes of airtime.
The cuts were revealed during an emergency staff meeting held by ITV Daytime boss Emma Gormley on Tuesday.
Good Morning Britain will now take over Lorraine‘s 9-10am slot for 22 weeks of the year, with Kelly’s show reduced to a 30-minute format running from 9.30am to 10am over the remaining 30 weeks.
The changes also mean Lorraine will present five days a week during her shortened season, leaving her Friday stand-in presenters, Ranvir Singh and Christine Lampard, no longer needed for the show.
Loose Women has also been affected, facing similar cuts that will see it off air for half the year.
ITV sources told MailOnline that the cuts are designed to redirect resources toward drama programming.
One insider explained: “There is a need to cost save but also so that the right money can go to the right shows and with everything getting more expensive these things have to be looked at.”
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This Morning, featuring presenters including Alison Hammond, Ben Shepherd, and Cat Deeley, remains unaffected by the changes.
An ITV source insisted the changes were not due to underperformance, and said: “We recognise daytime is a very popular genre and these changes and efficiencies are about preserving the future of the genre.”
The broadcaster also announced that ITV Studios will no longer produce Good Morning Britain, with production moving to ITN, the organisation behind ITV News.
This change could potentially lead to a merger between staff working on GMB, hosted by Susanna Reid, and the channel’s news bulletins.
Despite the significant scheduling changes, ITV has indicated that it is unlikely any on-screen talent will be axed as part of the restructuring.
Kevin Lygo, Managing Director of ITV’s Media and Entertainment Division, said: “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.”
Lygo added that the changes would allow ITV to “consolidate our news operations and expand our national, international and regional news output” while building upon their “proud history of trusted journalism”.