Ah, technically The One Show is 'on' before 7pm - it's build to start at 7pm, but as we all know it starts just a few minutes earlier.


Well The Bill is a 'soap' (is it? maybe 'continuing drama' now).....

So 'daytime' on BBC One doesn't end until 8pm on Fridays. Extraordinary.

Arguably it doesnt end till 8 on Sundays too with Countryfile.As more daytime style shows edge towards primetime maybe the title should be changed.

According to this article from The Mirror, Paul O'Grady is to sign an £8m deal with ITV for a primetime Friday night chat show.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/news/...5875-21745129/

That's Paul “I would rather be sweeping the streets than working for ITV", "Working at ITV was like the court of Caligula" O'Grady.

I find this story a little unbelievable, unless its the 9pm slot.

That makes sense to me, as Peter Fincham said he wanted variety and fun in that slot, plus it has a Coronation Street lead-in.

However, if its the 10.35pm slot, against Jonathan Ross, I just don't believe it. ITV don't have 2p to spend in that slot, never mind £8m.

I think 9pm would be the obvious choice.

If it comes about, would probably mean the end for Al Murrays Happy Hour. Are there supposed to be any more series of that ?

I am about to deliver news that will DELIGHT everyone on this thread...

The One Show has a spin-off!!!!

'The Ten Show', hosted by Adrian Chiles, is piloting now. I kid you not!

Adrian and a hand picked team of special guests will discuss and debate three of the top stories dominating the week’s headlines. From politics to celebrity, Adrian and his able team will each provide their unique opinions on the stories that have the country talking, whilst having a laugh along the way.

http://www.tvrecordings.com/shows/view/173

Was just thinking that myself - what has happened to that?

No mention on the upcoming programmes through ITV Sales. Must have been axed.

Sounds dire.

Sounds like a rip off of Live From Studio Five

The article says that it will go "head-to-head on Friday nights against BBC1 star Jonathan Ross", but I think 9pm is more likely. Could actually do quite well with a Corrie inheritence.


Al Murray was on Radio Five Live today. He said that he didn't know if Happy Hour would be coming back and that he's "very busy" doing all his tour and theatre stuff. I think we've probably seen the last of it.

I think it actually sounds like You're Fired, but without The Apprentice in it.

Delightful.

Flipping The Bill on it's head - what else is going to net around 4m against Spooks? I am surprised how both channels (BBC1 and ITV1) seem to be trying on Thursday's, but almost abandon the 9pm slot on Tuesday's. Around the World in 80 days seems much more of a Thursday show (especially as that'd let it finish the day before Children in Need) and Spooks has always been associated to earlier in the week (wasn't the last series aired on Monday's).

Life did excellently last night, and it's good to see another Attenborough series on our screens - no one can do nature documenatries better really. Blue Murder held up well on what an unsuprisingly good night for ITV1. Channel 4's ratings were awful. It's good to see FlashForward to continue doing well for Five.

I honestly thought you were kidding me until I saw the link.

Surely the man is busy enought (The One Show, MOTD2, The Apprentice: You're Fire) without adding another programming into the mix.

At this stage, usually about 8m...

And that was before it ran to a massive 2hrs 15 mins - to hold an average of 8m over that period is pretty good on any analysis.


CF is, but Antiques Roadshow should be getting 7-9m. So, no, AR is not holding up well at all. As CF seems to have a loyal 5m audience whatever is thrown at it, that should go out at 8m. I don't think that would increase BGT-TXF's ratings because they're pretty much at saturation point now anyway. And you'd have to have been living in a cave for the past fortnight not to have seen the wall-to-wall advertising and promotion of BGT-TXF, possibly the most expensively promoted show in TV history. So what extra viewers can BGT-TXF procure from here?

Is the extra ad revenue going to outweigh the cost of ITV buying these larger audiences in the first place? And can such a cash-strapped broadcaster which is in such a financial mess that no senior executive figure is remotely interested in being its Chairman or Chief Exec (another high-profile figure turned the Chairmanship down at the weekend) sustain a mega-costly ad campaign every week till Christmas?

Maybe they could turn the fruitless search for two new bosses into an Apprentice-style eviction show?

Sprinkle some Cowell magic on it et voila - 13m viewers...


Double-crushed!!



Life beats death - how appropriate.


Get him on BBC1. I'm sure the Beeb would look after him and give him a suitable vehicle for his considerable talent (and I don't mean the next series of SCD). He's been on the Beeb enough in the past few months - it won't have escaped his notice that he's got sizeable audiences each time too, something that never happened when he appeared on ITV1.

If only he could have taught Ramrod how to dance, he could have gone on 'Summer Cowell' and been watched by 13m...

Odd move for O'Grady. £8 million seems a hell of a risk in these times for a show thats hardly guaranteed to work. 9pm didn't exactly go too well for Jonathan Ross a few weeks ago, did it?!

O'Grady's audience is pensioners and housewives - not exactly lucrative. It might do well with the Corrie audience, I suppose - but I'd be shocked if it managed much more than 4-4.5m. Hardly worth the investment - ITV'd be better of sticking to Doc Martin repeats...

If Paul O'Grady does 50 shows a year, then I'd suggest that would cost ITV about £300,000 per show, with his wage and the production budget.

Not bad really considering something like Benidorm will be costing them way more than double that.

And I think he would agree to do 50, as its only 1 show a week and he can pre-record all over the place like Jonathan Ross does (2-3 in a week to get a few weeks off).

It fills up a primetime slot nicely for them. Like The Bill. It would be a reliable little show, giving ITV more time to focus on other slots.

I think O'Grady could work at 9pm taking a Corrie audience while also having more freedom in a post watershed slot. He could probably do about 45 shows a year at most (IAC, BGT, HK, stripped drama, holidays). So I'm really not sure about £8m unless it includes production costs. £8m over 45 shows would be about £180,000 an hour which seems excessive compared to other ITV talent.

It certainly is excessive, not even Jonathan Ross can get £8m a year.

It's probably an inflated figure.

It'd be £8m for the entire contract so £4m a year, if true.

That's a bit more reasonable. £8m a year would probably make him ITV's #1 earner (assuming pay cuts for A&D).

I suppose it's hard to tell just now until we find out how many shows he'd be doing for certain.

If they could get him into the Friday slot and getting maybe 4m a week, that would have a 9pm slot filled year round and they could then drop The Bill and put comedies on Thursdays (with a Corrie lead-in as well).

Aren't you forgetting Mr Simon Cowell?

He is bound to be getting more than £8m a year.

Good point.

It was reported to be £20m over 3 years. Signed at the end of 2006 and up for renewal just now. Though the number doesn't include the production costs or anything like that. It could be more if it's paid per hour (BGT and XF are longer than in 2007) or if there are bonuses.

It does every Saturday & Sunday nights! Yes in fairness the Beeb's Ryanair ad did very well.



Maybe he can present the One Show spin off? Or CountryAntiqueFileWatchShow* the BBCs new 3 hour Sunday night show?

PS. No predictions today then? PM me with Wednesdays lottery numbers if you please!