Loose Women, Good Morning Britain, This Morning and Lorraine are reportedly in the midst of urgent discussions as they grapple with a significant drop in viewership. The popular daytime programmes are staring down the barrel of salary freezes and potential redundancies as ITV chiefs scramble to mitigate the financial fallout from a decline in ratings.
The network is reportedly resorting to severe cost-cutting measures across some of its most beloved shows. Rumours are swirling that staff may be offered shorter three-month contracts over longer-term agreements, and freelance workers could face cuts.
Even the much-anticipated annual ITV summer party, a highlight for the channel's biggest stars to mingle and unwind, is under threat of cancellation. According to reports, ITV's daytime boss has convened meetings to deliver the sobering news to teams from all four flagship shows.
Staff were apparently presented with a graph illustrating their plummeting ratings, reports the Mirror. In stark contrast, the graph highlighted the soaring viewership numbers enjoyed by streaming giants like Netflix and Amazon Prime.
A source told The Sun: "ITV is really tightening their belt. There have been concerns for months at the top but now that it’s trickled down to the shop floor it feels very depressing. A lot of staff are being put on three-month contracts, probably so they can get rid of people easily."
They claimed pay freezes are already in place and that ITV is trying to keep costs down by "not trialling new talent on regular segments". It's been suggested that bosses are hoping ratings will get a boost during the UK election campaign.
The source added that the news is "particularly difficult to stomach" following the expensive This Morning revamp.
However, an ITV spokesperson told OK! "Town hall meetings happen frequently for teams to keep up to date with company news and also serve as an opportunity for staff to have questions answered. The latest one was to celebrate the success of Lorraine Kelly receiving a BAFTA Special Recognition Award and the two BAFTA nominations for Daytime last weekend. It was also a transparent portrayal of what is currently happening across the industry."
Reports suggest that the new hosts of This Morning, Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley, have secured a whopping £550,000 as they step into the shoes of Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby. However, their first month on the job saw ratings drop from over a million to 692,500 and by the end of April, the average number of live viewers had dwindled to 544,000.
In reference to This Morning's ratings an ITV spokesperson said: "As a broadcaster and streamer, ITV has a range of programming in its Daytime schedules. This Morning reached an average 4.2 million viewers a week in April alone, its highest so far in 2024. In 2023 This Morning was one of the most streamed shows on ITVX.
"Like all media, This Morning has expanded into the digital sphere with record breaking results. This Morning remains Britain's most talked about and influential daytime TV show and has never had a better connection with its viewer, with just under 160 million video views of This Morning content and reached 63 million unique social media accounts in April."
