How would you improve ITV1?

I get the impression that the Sun epi of Coro is put there to bolster the ratings for the 20:00 drama, I doubt Heartbeat would get quite so high ratings if it weren't for Coro's being there.

The second Monday epi of Coro is definitely superfluous; they could perhaps extend Tonight with TMD by half an hour, include another feature in it or something.

There's certainly no need for six Emmerdales ! Perhaps a new (original) quizshow or regional programme at 19:00 a couple of days a week?

I'm not too bothered about five episodes of Corrie a week - it's the Sunday Emmerdale and regular one-hour specials which really take the piss.


Five half-hour episodes a week should be the max, and in events when they can't be shown in their slot (i.e. due to football or F1) episodes should be pulled rather than rescheduled to lower their episode count slightly - and more importantly minimise the impact on the rest of the schedule.

They should just axe all weekend soaps and axe the 2nd Monday ep of Corrie. It's risky and arguably nonsensical but it will force new ideas. ITV can't rely on soaps forever.

Grade should just scale them down to 3 Corries and 5 Emmerdales and say to Simon Shaps, 'I want stellar programming to fill the 3 slots freed up.'

For goodness sake, they could easily find something that works eventually, it's just laziness. The soaps are the jewels in ITV's crown, they should be protecting them and keeping them at optimum levels of production and quality - that means less episodes and better structured storylines so it doesn't feel so 'thinly spread'.

They could do anything in the freed slots, pilot new serials, a hospital drama perhaps, create a quiz show. Anything, just to add some flipping variety to the schedule. As someone else said, 7-9pm on ITV1 is very dull. Of the 14 hours a week from 7-9pm, over half are filled with Corrie, Emmerdale and The Bill.

ITV MUST stop scraping the barrell if it wants to salvage its reputation and revive its flagging fortunes.

As other members have pointed out, cutback the amount of soaps, the second Monday episode was originally used as a cliffhanger, it should go back to that.

Issue a firm commitment to the News at 10.30 and attract a top presenter to front it, Mark Austin is good at 6.30pm, but looks weak following Huw at 10.30pm.

Invest in some quality American shows such as House, Prison Break Grey's Anatomy, they would be ratings winners if scheduled at 8.30, 9pm and not abused like Entourage which was shunted to 11.30.

Associate each evening with a particular programme, Ie Monday Night Drama, the Friday Night Movie etc.

Stop trying to replicate the Paul O'Grady Show!!! just settle on a couple of quiz shows and leave it

I agree with getting some American drama's for the peaktime schedule. Shows like Desperate Housewives and Prison Break are very popular on C4/Five and they tend to screen them in 10pm slots. If ITV were to move the news to 11pm they could do the same if they bid for the rights to American series. Supernatural which is currently on ITV2 would suit a 10pm ITV1 slot IMO.

As for the soaps - well ive said this many times before but I would like Corrie reduced. I would settle for 4 nights a week, id probabaly opt for dumping the Sunday night episode as I have got used to the Monday double even if it really isnt needed. But in an ideal world it would be 3 a week(Mon, Wed, Fri).

What I think should be done:
Call on the Government to end all this digital switchover malarkey.
Cease transmission of ITV3 and ITV4 and ITV Play.
End all-night quiz shows overnights. For example, show it from, say, 3am-5am.
Reinstate the ITN News name for ITV's national news. Increase the news budget, taken from some of the money ITV receives from its quiz shows. And that in turn could improve ITN's international output with more reports done overseas on-the-spot.
Decrease the amount of time of soaps especially Emmerdale's.
Bring in more current affairs series, children's television etc.
A special overnight service 'Night Time' brought back. Its output could come from world television and from ITV's back catalog of old programmes.
Actually, do something with the Saturday night schedule....where is the variety nowadays?
Cilla Black should be encouraged back to ITV to present Surprise! Surprise!
And, ITV considering a Telethon comeback every 2 years?

What is people's views on this?

I agree with ITV Play being axed, but why ITV3 and ITV4?

can;t there just put Kids TV at 5pm? instead also

woudl Cilla black want to come back on TV?

Although I've no problem with the occassional US series, I wouldn't like to see ITV1 going down that route as we'd basically end up in the same situation as with soaps, but with US series instead - and we'd all be moaning about how US shows are airing on our three terrestrial channels at the same time so many nights a week!


IMO the situation is easy to identify if not so easy to solve. ITV generally look for too many quick fix solutions, whether it be a reality show stripped over a couple of weeks or however many two-part detective shows they can squeeze into their annual budget.

ITV need to be thinking long term - not looking for solutions which will boost their ratings for a couple of weeks before Christmas, but for programmes that will boost ratings week in, week out for a good chunk of the year. Get these in place and it'll provide a good platform for launching other series around them too.


Saturday night is the obvious success story - and basically the success of that has arguably all been down to Dancing on Ice and the way programmes have been scheduled around it, meaning ITV have maintained a decent, above average, audience share for most of the evening for most of the week.


And it's not just the scheduling - but the variety - the programmes aren't all carbon copies of each other, unlike an evening watching Emmerdale, Coronation Street, The Bill and the latest Caroline Quentin drama.


And for ITV alot of the programmes airing this winter have been quite risky compared to their usual safe parameters.


We need this to trickle through into the rest of the week - I don't actually think it's Emmerdale or Corrie which is clogging up the schedules, it's The Bill - because the 8pm slot is the heart of primetime and ITV don't really compete there.

I say I give TV burp 8 Week runs 2-3 over the year:

so at the most: their would be 24 shows over the year ( 28 week - nothing

How can you say Emmerdale isnt clogging up the schedule? Its on 6 nights a week which in itself if ridiculous. The Bill is only one twice, although for 1 hour, but still less than Emmerdale and Corrie. The Bill should be once a week though.

ITV are possibly in a situation now of having the strongest Saturday night stable of programmes of any channel