ITV daytime faces a shake-up as budget cuts bite and bosses scramble to keep the familiar shows looking the same. Kevin Lygo, ITV’s managing director, admitted it would be “challenging” to deliver daytime schedules that feel unchanged when funding is slashed and more than 220 jobs are cut.
From January 2026, Lorraine Kelly’s long-running morning show will be cut from an hour to just 30 minutes. Lygo admitted it was tough but said the changes were necessary.
“As a commercial broadcaster you earn most of your money with big audiences in peak time. That is what advertisers want. Those morning shows have been on forever and they are brilliant, but they do cost a great deal of money,” he explained.
He added the plan is to keep shows and presenters that viewers know and love but with fewer staff. “The editorial brief was if you have a lot less money to try to make it so the audience isn’t shocked. They should look more or less the same. But unfortunately that means people doing a perfectly good job will lose their jobs.”
The cuts were announced in May, with ITV telling staff that 220 out of 440 daytime production roles will go. Loose Women will also be scaled back with fewer panelists needed. Insiders suggested around eight to ten could be dropped in the New Year, leading to fears panellists will be bolder and more outspoken than usual in an effort to keep their places. ITV insists there will be no mass cull of its stars.
Good Morning Britain will face cuts too but Susanna Reid is expected to stay put. A source told The Mirror she is seen as central to the show. “When there are cuts this big normally no one is safe but Susanna Reid is someone ITV want to build the show around. She is 100% safe from the cuts but will be very worried for friends she has on GMB and what the cuts mean for the quality of the programme.”
Meanwhile, Lygo defended ITV’s decision to keep airing John Torode and Lisa Faulkner’s Weekend Kitchen after Torode was sacked from MasterChef. The BBC dropped him following a report that upheld a complaint about the use of racial language. Torode denied the allegation but apologised.
Lygo said ITV had no reason to pull his shows. “We did ask the producers if there were any incidents and they said everything was fine. We pre-recorded those shows. I felt it was a bit much for us to jump on the bandwagon and just deny these shows to go out.”
In Edinburgh, BBC chief content officer Kate Phillips addressed the separate case of Gregg Wallace, who quit MasterChef after a review upheld 45 misconduct allegations. She said the BBC acted quickly once complaints were brought to her in 2019.
“I acted on them fast. I think I acted responsibly. I left him in no doubt of the expected behaviour.” Wallace has since apologized, saying he was “deeply sorry for any distress caused” and never meant to humiliate anyone.
The coming year will test ITV daytime like never before. Viewers may not notice the budgets shrinking on screen, but behind the cameras, the job losses and pressure to do more with less are already being felt.
