Here's a suggestion: what are people's thoughts on ITV giving X Factor a year off in 2015 and bringing it back in 2016?

Obviously from ITV's point of view it would be a financial blow, but next Autumn is probably the Autumn they'd hold up best without it. The reason for that is that they have the Rugby World Cup taking up a lot of airtime in September and October so they'll be making a lot of profit on that, which would offset some of the effects of no X Factor. If X Factor does air next Autumn it will face heavy disruption anyway as the Rugby World Cup will force it off Saturday nights throughout most of September and October anyway, so there wouldn't even be any need to find a replacement for those slots. Sundays don't have any cup games but I'm sure they could find something to fill the one hour 8pm slot (probably dramas, if Grantchester returns that slot would be a much better fit). They still have Downton on Sundays anyway (which is down year on year but seems to have stabilised at least) so Sundays could hold up anyway.

The main difficulty would come in November/December. Sundays again wouldn't be too bad as if push came to shove they could just air the 90 minute I'm A Celebrity episodes from 8.30pm or 8pm to make things a bit easier. Saturdays would be more difficult however. I would extend the Saturday I'm A Celebrity shows to 90 minutes and attempt to launch a new show. The new show wouldn't be anything like the kind of commitment they make to X Factor though as it would only run for about 8 weeks (probably 75-90 mins per week) but would be big bold and ambitious. A schedule consisting of Jekyll & Hyde (if ready), a new and hyped big entertainment show and I'm A Celebrity could possibly work well for them.

The risk of this is reduced as X Factor would then return in 2016. The whole point of this is that XF could use the year off to recharge its batteries in the hope that the year off could re-ignite a bit of interest in the show and give it a bit of a shot in the arm as right now it seems to be in decay. The new schedule next Autumn would be risky but they have the cushion that if all goes wrong X Factor is at least back in the slots the following year, hopefully nice and refreshed. If the new entertainment show and drama(s) go well then great news as they could then schedule those around X Factor (or X Factor around those depending where the priority lay) in 2016, creating an even stronger Autumn schedule (which they'll need and have the budget for with next to no sport that Autumn at all) going forwards.

It would be a risk but one I think is worth taking as it could ultimately prolong the lifespan of X Factor (they could still honour the 3 year contract, just with seasons in 2016 and 2017 instead of 2015, BGT would run as normal) and potentially find a new hit as it could launch in the kind of slot that they don't have many of any more. The hit they take would most likely at least be short term if it all goes pear shaped as X Factor would return the following year hopefully in better shape (and having avoided a 2015 series that could be messed around with badly due to the rugby), and at least they have the financial backup of the Rugby World Cup next year which they wouldn't have in subsequent Autumns, meaning it is the best opportunity they have to take such a risk.

Given my unpopularity in this thread I'm not sure if you're being sarcastic or not.

Ant and Dec are absolutely vital to IAC.

Theyre one of the main reasons it has managed to survive long after all the other early 2000s reality shows have fallen by the wayside.

X Factor burned brightly but has dropped sharply. Strictly peaked in 2010 but ratings after that stayed pretty good. Why did Strictly hold its audience better than X Factor?

I don't see Ant & Dec important to BGT at all. In fact it there were not there I don't think anyone would notice.

Personally I think to free up Ant & Dec ITV should take Stephen Mulhern over to the main show (BGT) where he can thrive like he does on BGMT (which is increasingly more entertaining than the main show), which would allow A&D to to something else for ITV.

Britain's Got Talent can move to Autumn where it would probably work better alongside SCD as another fun show.

The X Factor can take BGT place in March through to June. I think BGT would thrive in Autumn. Its just the type of show that could do well when the nights get darker. The share's over Summer as usually 40%+.

Therefore having BGT during A/W would give ITV more chance of launching successful entertainment and dramas after and before.

I suppose the problem with TXF taking a year off - not that I'm convinced it would ultimately do much for ratings anyway - is that wouldn't the headlines in the papers simply read 'X Factor AXED in 2015' and this serve to further cement the idea in people's heads that it simply isn't the show it used to be? I don't know, I just don't think it's ever helpful for it to be common public knowledge that a show is essentially running out of gas, in this case to the extent that its broadcaster may feel a year's break is worth a punt. The press are never going to go for the whole recharge its batteries and come back bigger and stronger thing.

I see it like this:

X Factor appeals to a younger demographic, who by their very nature are liable to finding new things and growing out of old hypes. Those who were the show's key viewers during the big years, the people who were 16/17 in 2010, are all at uni or in jobs now, they don't have time for XF anymore. And ITV haven't done a fat lot to entice 'the next generation' of teenagers in to replace them - they haven't recognised that they need to, being so complacent with the ill-informed idea that bringing back SharonSimon/Princess Cheryl would fix everything. Whereas Strictly's older demographics are less likely to find better things to do because their situations aren't as susceptible to change.

Ant and Dec ARE IACGMOH. The jungle residents are just fodder for their comedy act. They have the ability to say/react as the viewing public are at home. It is a unique quality (Brucie had it in his prime) and what carries this show to the heights it hits.

Yeah I like that idea. The thing is IAC is a show that can start at 7pm/8pm or basically any time. Its not needed to be after the watershed. Its the perfect vehicle to launched news shows after and dramas.

The problem I have with ITV, is that the schedules are so set in stone, so predictable that its boring. Saturday's are also boring when they have a night full of LE shows. They need to mix it up a bit. Start with a quiz, followed by a big entertainment show, drama, then comedy.

Nice v nasty? Younger people moving on quicker to the next 'thing' maybe.

The other solution would be to start X Factor at the end of October and have the earlier rounds airing now with the lives from end of December to February. That would effectively replace DOI too. It would create a bit of a void in September/October and they may take a bit of a hit but it would also give them the opportunity to find the next 'big' show for autumn peak time.

As nice as it would be for the Christmas No. 1 not to be ruined, would they sell as many singles in February or would that not be as strong a consideration even though *cough* it's all about the talent ?

Didn't the first series of Pop Idol run to that schedule?

That'd be my solution - it'd wipe out the Christmas number one song angle but that never harmed series one of Pop Idol which ran with that either-side-of-Christmas schedule.

EDIT: As above.

It'd also totally exterminate The Voice which I'm sure Mr Cowell wouldn't mind at all.

Who says your unpopular? Take the stuff you read here with the proverbial pinch of salt.
All views are welcome and while I did not agree with all your points about XF your enthusiasm for the show was obvious and I hope you are still enjoying it.

How much money is really made from the winner's single anyway? Selling 300,000 79p downloads probably doesnt make as much money as one ad break.

It'd still sell the same amount in February - Will Young's winners single did over a million copies in its first week. It's more about the free publicity that comes from the 'whoever you vote to win will be your Christmas number one' stuff they spew out

Win-win there for ITV - sign golden handcuffs with Mel and Sue so they leave Bake-off (and try to kill the show) and have another double-act waiting in the wings for BGT/IAC/etc....

Plus it follows in their grandest tradition of - if you can't find your own talent, nick it from the Beeb's!

They've already started down that path with this new chatshow thing they've signed up Mel and Sue to do. Suspect our GBBO friends will have a big offer to make a decision on in the near future. The only thing that could save us is if they happened to notice Sussanah Reid's recent career trajetctory since she went over to the dark side. Sigh.

In one of the most significant content deals struck by a VoD operator yet, Amazon Instant Video has nabbed the exclusive UK rights to NBC's Constantine. The first episode is already available and the rest will stream shortly after their US premiere.

In the US it launched with 4.3M viewers on Friday night, scoring 1.4 in the key demo. TVByTheNumbers notes this was an "OK" debut.

oh and if the public turns against them for the big money deal, Bake Off type viewers seem like the type who would not take kindly to them being sell outs.

The over-saturation of X Factor this year can't have helped it. With so many hours of it being broadcast on TV (The Friday night show, the Saturday show, the Results show, the repeats on Sat and Sun afternoons etc) it just feels like overkill and, to me, makes me feel I don't need to watch the show on Saturday as there are so many other opportunities for me to catch up.

It probably doesn't help that it's become so venomous and depressing. If it's not Cheryl fighting with Simon and being nasty, it's the trying to pull at your heart strings sob stories that each contestant must have, which has just become a cliche now.

It doesn't help that the standard of talent on show isn't great, but then you're never going to get the same quality year on year when you've been running for so long.

That's why I like Strictly - it's lighthearted and trying to have fun, what Saturday nights should be about. Although, I'm getting increasingly annoyed with the BBC audience booing whenever a judge says something negative about a celebs dance.

ITV though need their highest rating shows at the time of year (autumn) when advertisers will pay the most (ie in the run-up to Christmas). That's why X-Factor and Downton will stay in the autumn until such time as they decline to be being below average performers for the channel (if they ever do - they are still a huge way away from that even now).

I watched the pilot on Amazon yesterday. It's not bad, but not great either. They have made much of being "true" to the original DC Comics idea of having the lead character as a Brit (unlike the Keanu Reeves movie version). I suspect that NBC were hoping it would take off like Sleepy Hollow did for FOX last year - guy with British accent fights spookiness in contemporary America. But it just doesn't have the same sense of fun. And I suspect (perhaps unfairly) that the Northern accent of the Brit in Constantine is less accessible to most Yanks than the very posh Southern accent of the Brit in Sleepy Hollow...

A New Place to Call Home ? Channel swap confirmed for hit Aussie drama:


http://www.c21media.net/new-home-for-axed-oz-drama/