C4 poaches Paul O'Grady

Indeed, "they took him for granted and he didn't feel loved", well wasn't it enough that he had a daily show and got all the big guests. Just imagine what all those people who work on shows that get axed mid run or shunted around the schedule feel!


Plus with his show airing over the summer he'll probably be reduced to talking about Big Brother every day with his guest line up being this week evictee. ITV will probably ban all their talent from appearing on the show which will mean a limit to decent guests

They've all suddenly got very smug, no doubt next week when PO'G is on R&J they'll all be making negative comments about ITV, despite it being them who built up all their careers/ratings

If ITV did ban their stars from appearing on the show it would do Paul O'Grady far more good than ITV! Anyway, that sort of thing rarely happens nowadays.

Richard said later in the show Paul O'Grady would be on Monday, and he'd made some "interesting" comments about why he left ITV.

Notice tonight C4 have a new ad promoting their daytime line-up - and they're pretty bold in making it out to be the place to be.

Also, C4 currently showing a look at celeb fitness videos with Eamonn Holmes and Lorraine Kelly - so there is certainly opportunities for "daytime" stars to host primetime programmes.

And it is a very strong line-up that ITV just cannot compete with, due to it's commitment to Childrens programming. I'm sure with the arrival of the kids channel they'd love to abandon the ITV1 slot, wonder if they're tempted to push their luck with OFCOM.

At the point that CiTV comes on, ITV immediately becomes only the fourth or even fifth most popular channel. Kids TV just doesn't get the audience or the advertisers I'm afraid, and Channel 4 gets a commanding lead into peak time.

Anyway, if it's open season, maybe ITV could make a bid for Countdown, seeing as though they make it.

I wondered why they never did that back when Richard Whiteley was at the helm.

Possibly because the only slots they could offer would be 2.45pm or 5pm. We all know what sort of fuss there was when Channel 4 moved it back out of its traditional slot

Granada make it, not ITV.

Granada are just as much an independent company as any else in the business, they just happen to have most of their programmes on ITV.

Granada is the production arm of ITV plc.

But they are also independent and make programmes for other broadcasters.

I never said they didn't.

Yorkshire make it. They just call it Granada Yorkshire on screen.

What point are people trying to make here. Everybody knows who makes Countdown?!

C4 would certainly have clauses in the contract preventing ITV from taking it for themselves.

I think with most programmes, regardless of who produces it, there is a clause which gives the broadcaster the rights to the next series. ITV could only pick it up if C4 axed it.

..and of course, if they persuaded Paul to come back to ITV Daytime.