ITV News

I do think it's a shame that ITV NC is unwilling or unable to drop ad breaks when there's a big story - Julian Manyon got cut off in mid sentence just before 6, and the White House press conference was cut off at 6.26 for ads.

I think he means the theme tune that ITV have been using for their Budget coverage for years, well, up until last year anyway.

I see.

Today's actual schedule so far:

0700 Andrew Harvey and Lucy Alexander
1000 John Nicolson (and Lucy Alexander)
1130 Andrew Harvey (London studio)
1225 Budget Special with Nicholas Owen and Alastair Stewart
1400 Alastair Stewart and Leyla Daybelge (Chris Rogers at the videowall)
1500 Mark Austin and Leyla Daybelge (Chris Rogers at the videowall)
1600 Felicity Barr and Steve Scott (Chris Rogers at the videowall)
1715 Leyla Daybelge (CSO)
1830 Evening News
1855 Chris Rogers

Can anyone tell us if tomorrow's schedule is back to normal or is it still different?

Sky EPG says:

0700 Andrew Harvey and Lucy Alexander
1000 John Nicholson (Lucy Alexander)
1145 Andrew Harvey
1230 ITV Lunchtime News Nicholas Owen
1300 Chris Rogers and Leyla Daybelge
1500 Mark Austin and Leyla Daybelge
1600 Felicity Barr and Steve Scott
1730 Leyla Daybelge
1830 ITV Evening News Mark and Mary
1900 Nick Clarke
2000 Felicity Barr
2100 Steve Scott
2130 US Election Weekly Steve Scott
2200 Steve Scott
2230 ITV News Trevor McDonald (yeah right)
2300 Nick Clarke

So Nick Clark's probably doing London Tonight at 10:50

Good to see Leyla Daybelge on during the day rather than being stuck away on evenings.

And the NC is obviously intending to fully establish the duos of Harvey and Alexander, and Steve Scott and Felicity Barr.

Yeah perhaps at first there was an experiment of pairs, and I really do think that Steve Scott is great with Felicity Barr, as well as Andrew Harvey being with Lucy Alexander - better than Eamonn and Fiona. What I don't understand is why don't they continue the double headed presentation through till 930 or whenever it is. Using current post 1pm presenters, Austin, Rogers, Daybelge, Barr, Ohajah and Scott, they could have:

1pm Steve and Leyla
3pm Mark and Leyla
4pm Steve and Felicity
530pm Steve
6pm Felicity
630pm Mark and Mary
7pm Chris and Felicity
8pm Chris and Joyce
930pm Chris
1030pm Trevor

No sports section tonight - just a few results read by John

According to next week's TV Quick (20th-26th) that John Suchet will appear on This Morning on the 26th to talk about his retirement from ITN.

So I'm guessing that his retirement is at the end of the month.

He is 60 on 29 March.

Press Gazette reports:

"Tonight With Trevor MacDonald will feature an edition on late ITV News reporter Terry Lloyd on Monday night, marking a year since his death while covering the war in Iraq."

Digiguide says:

"One year after Terry Lloyd was killed in Iraq, the programme investigates the tragic incident involving the ITN reporter and his crew. Reporter Michael Nicholson and cameraman Daniel Demoustier - the only survivor of Lloyd's crew - return to Iraq to find out what really happened that day on the road to Basra."

I actually think it is a shame ITN did not use their classic [?] familiar Budget music. I used to like the Budget theme music. I hope ITN use their familiar theme tune for next year's Budget. And I gather John Suchet will not do Mar 25th's News At Ten Thirty because he must be tired for finishing work at 12am, getting up at 6am [?] to go to This Morning.