ITV News Channel
Encyclopedia
The ITV News Channel was a 24-hour television
news
channel in the United Kingdom
which broadcast from 1 August 2000 to 23 December 2005. It was available on Sky, NTL:Telewest
, Freeview (latterly only between 6:00 am and 6:00 pm) and analogue cable
, presenting national and international news plus regular business, sport, entertainment and weather summaries. Priority was usually given to breaking news stories. There was also an added focus on British stories, drawing on the resources of the ITV network's regional newsrooms.
as the "ITN News Channel". In June 2002, Carlton Television
and Granada Television
- the predecessors of ITV plc - bought out ITN's 65-per-cent stake. This led to a rebrand as the ITV News Channel in September 2002. In April 2004 the newly created ITV plc
bought NTL's 35-per-cent stake to assume full control of the channel.
As the ITN News Channel, the channel was broadcast from a small studio with accommodation for only one presenter at a time. When relaunched as the ITV News Channel, it initially used the standard ITV News
studio of the time, which was built for fixed length bulletins only, so the style of presentation was always more basic than that of its competitors.
From the February 2004 relaunch, the channel came into its own. Along with the rest of ITV News, the channel was presented from the so-called 'theatre of news' set, a large virtual studio allowing presentation either from behind a desk or by presenters walking around, using the news wall to explain a story with the aid of graphics. For the first time, two presenters could present the channel together, which the management viewed as an improvement.
As the channel shared facilities with ITV News bulletins on the ITV Network (which were also simulcast on the news channel), the channel had to move to other studios for around an hour before each ITV bulletin to allow for rehearsals. Initially a single locked-off camera studio was used at these times, which was very basic. Later the channel used a virtual reality studio at these times or, following ITN's takeover of the production of London Tonight
, that studio.
News content and programming for the channel was provided by ITN.
When the channel became the ITV News Channel, presenters from ITV News on the ITV Network began presenting the news channel. For the first month of so before any regular appearances occurred, many reporters also presented on the News Channel, including Ros Childs, who presented after John Suchet on the first day as the ITV News Channel. During the Iraq war the well-known British newscaster
Angela Rippon
presented on the channel and then went on to host a regular weekend programme in 2004 and 2005.
Following the February 2004 relaunch, presenters included ITN veteran Alastair Stewart
who hosted the flagship Live with Alastair Stewart programme every weekday morning. Andrew Harvey, Lucy Alexander, Leyla Daybelge, Chris Rogers, Phil Gayle, Owen Thomas, and Sasha Herriman were also used. All of ITV News' main presenters, except Trevor McDonald, also appeared on the channel. Presenters from ITV's regional news programmes and freelancers regularly appeared on the channel at weekends and holiday periods.
In December 2005 Scott Chisholm - part of the original 1989 Sky News
team - joined the channel to present the breakfast programme.
and BBC News 24.
At times of breaking UK news of major Australian importance (such as terrorist attacks), the channel was sometimes relayed by Australia's Nine Network
. However, the Nine Network usually preferred the Sky News feed, to which it had equal access.
) to launch the CITV channel based on the existing CITV
brand, and to use its funding to boost ITV News coverage on the main ITV Network. But on 15 December 2005 the decision was taken to close the ITV News Channel.
The closure was subsequently brought forward and the channel closed down on Friday 23 December 2005 at 18:00 (GMT). The reason given was that it would have been unfair to expect the channel's staff to work long hours over Christmas
knowing that the channel would soon be closing.
The schedule for the last day of transmission on the ITV News Channel:
At the end of the final programme, newsreader Alastair Stewart
closed the channel with the words:
So that's the end of five years broadcasting as the ITV News Channel. Our thanks to all our contributors, studio and production staff, to all the reporters and correspondents and everyone who made the channel the professional and effective operation that it was. But most of all, you, our viewers. A big thank you to each and every one of you. We hope we both informed and occasionally entertained you over the years. It was our mission to bring you the fastest breaking news and the most comprehensive analysis. We hope that you'll think we succeeded.
The screen then faded out to black followed by a picture of the ITN end board. The station closed shortly afterwards.
During 2007 there was some speculation that cable group Virgin Media was considering launching its own news channel to rival Sky News and BBC News, with some reports suggesting that it might look to partner with ITN, but this has not occurred.
The channel used to broadcast live UEFA Champions League
football matches whenever two English teams were playing simultaneously, with the other game being shown on the ITV Network, if ITV2
(ITV's former secondary channel to show Champions League games) had a full schedule. When a breaking news bulletin was being reported, the news report would take the full screen while the football would be shown in an inset in the corner.
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
news
News
News is the communication of selected information on current events which is presented by print, broadcast, Internet, or word of mouth to a third party or mass audience.- Etymology :...
channel in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
which broadcast from 1 August 2000 to 23 December 2005. It was available on Sky, NTL:Telewest
Virgin Media
Virgin Media Inc. is a company which provides fixed and mobile telephone, television and broadband internet services to businesses and consumers in the United Kingdom...
, Freeview (latterly only between 6:00 am and 6:00 pm) and analogue cable
Analogue television in the United Kingdom
Analogue television in the United Kingdom includes terrestrial, satellite and cable services broadcasting using analogue television signals.-Analogue terrestrial television in the United Kingdom:...
, presenting national and international news plus regular business, sport, entertainment and weather summaries. Priority was usually given to breaking news stories. There was also an added focus on British stories, drawing on the resources of the ITV network's regional newsrooms.
History
The channel launched on 1 August 2000 as a joint venture between ITN and NTLVirgin Media
Virgin Media Inc. is a company which provides fixed and mobile telephone, television and broadband internet services to businesses and consumers in the United Kingdom...
as the "ITN News Channel". In June 2002, Carlton Television
Carlton Television
Carlton Television was the ITV franchise holder for London and the surrounding counties including the cities of Solihull and Coventry of the West Midlands, south Suffolk, middle and east Hampshire, Oxfordshire, south Bedfordshire, south Northamptonshire, parts of Herefordshire & Worcestershire,...
and Granada Television
Granada Television
Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
- the predecessors of ITV plc - bought out ITN's 65-per-cent stake. This led to a rebrand as the ITV News Channel in September 2002. In April 2004 the newly created ITV plc
ITV plc
ITV plc is a British media company that operates 12 of the 15 regional television broadcasters that make up the ITV Network, the oldest and largest commercial terrestrial television network in the United Kingdom...
bought NTL's 35-per-cent stake to assume full control of the channel.
As the ITN News Channel, the channel was broadcast from a small studio with accommodation for only one presenter at a time. When relaunched as the ITV News Channel, it initially used the standard ITV News
ITV News
ITV News is the branding of news programmes on the British television network ITV. Since 1955, ITV's news bulletins have been produced by Independent Television News . The channel's news coverage has won awards from the Royal Television Society, Emmy Awards and BAFTAs. Between 2004 and 2008, the...
studio of the time, which was built for fixed length bulletins only, so the style of presentation was always more basic than that of its competitors.
From the February 2004 relaunch, the channel came into its own. Along with the rest of ITV News, the channel was presented from the so-called 'theatre of news' set, a large virtual studio allowing presentation either from behind a desk or by presenters walking around, using the news wall to explain a story with the aid of graphics. For the first time, two presenters could present the channel together, which the management viewed as an improvement.
As the channel shared facilities with ITV News bulletins on the ITV Network (which were also simulcast on the news channel), the channel had to move to other studios for around an hour before each ITV bulletin to allow for rehearsals. Initially a single locked-off camera studio was used at these times, which was very basic. Later the channel used a virtual reality studio at these times or, following ITN's takeover of the production of London Tonight
London Tonight
London Tonight is a regional news programme broadcast on ITV London . Produced by ITN, the programme is broadcast at 6pm every weeknight, also including local sports news and local features of interest.Like all regional news programmes on ITV in England and Wales and Channel Television, it uses...
, that studio.
News content and programming for the channel was provided by ITN.
Presenters
During the period as the ITN News Channel, its pool of presenters were from across the ITN programme portfolio of ITV, Channel 4 and Five News, along with occasional freelancers. Presenters included John Suchet, Leyla Daybelge, Alison Bell, Andrew Harvey, Sharon Grey, Owen Thomas, Kirsty Lang, Simon Vigar, Lloyd Bracey, Sasha Herriman, and Rachel McTavish.When the channel became the ITV News Channel, presenters from ITV News on the ITV Network began presenting the news channel. For the first month of so before any regular appearances occurred, many reporters also presented on the News Channel, including Ros Childs, who presented after John Suchet on the first day as the ITV News Channel. During the Iraq war the well-known British newscaster
News presenter
A news presenter is a person who presents news during a news program in the format of a television show, on the radio or the Internet.News presenters can work in a radio studio, television studio and from remote broadcasts in the field especially weather...
Angela Rippon
Angela Rippon
Angela M. Rippon, OBE, born 12 October 1944, Plymouth, Devon, England, is an English television journalist, newsreader, writer and presenter. Rippon presented radio and television news programmes in South West England before moving to BBC One's Nine O'Clock News, becoming a regular presenter in 1975...
presented on the channel and then went on to host a regular weekend programme in 2004 and 2005.
Following the February 2004 relaunch, presenters included ITN veteran Alastair Stewart
Alastair Stewart
Alastair James Stewart OBE is an English journalist and newscaster. Stewart is currently employed by ITN where he is a main newscaster for ITV News.-Early life:...
who hosted the flagship Live with Alastair Stewart programme every weekday morning. Andrew Harvey, Lucy Alexander, Leyla Daybelge, Chris Rogers, Phil Gayle, Owen Thomas, and Sasha Herriman were also used. All of ITV News' main presenters, except Trevor McDonald, also appeared on the channel. Presenters from ITV's regional news programmes and freelancers regularly appeared on the channel at weekends and holiday periods.
In December 2005 Scott Chisholm - part of the original 1989 Sky News
Sky News
Sky News is a 24-hour British and international satellite television news broadcaster with an emphasis on UK and international news stories.The service places emphasis on rolling news, including the latest breaking news. Sky News also hosts localised versions of the channel in Australia and in New...
team - joined the channel to present the breakfast programme.
Competition
The channel's main competitors were Sky NewsSky News
Sky News is a 24-hour British and international satellite television news broadcaster with an emphasis on UK and international news stories.The service places emphasis on rolling news, including the latest breaking news. Sky News also hosts localised versions of the channel in Australia and in New...
and BBC News 24.
At times of breaking UK news of major Australian importance (such as terrorist attacks), the channel was sometimes relayed by Australia's Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
. However, the Nine Network usually preferred the Sky News feed, to which it had equal access.
Closure
In December 2005 it was confirmed that the channel would close down in 2006, in order to use its Freeview bandwidth (which was already timeshared with ITV4ITV4
ITV4 is a British television station which was launched on 1 November 2005. It is owned by ITV Digital Channels Ltd, a division of ITV plc, and is part of the ITV network. The channel has a male-oriented line-up, including sport, cop shows and US comedies and dramas, as well as classic ITV action...
) to launch the CITV channel based on the existing CITV
CITV
CITV is a British television channel from ITV Digital Channels Ltd, a division of ITV plc. It broadcasts content from the CITV archive, as well as commissions and acquisitions. CITV itself is the programming block on the main ITV Network .The CITV channel broadcasts from 06:00 to 18:00...
brand, and to use its funding to boost ITV News coverage on the main ITV Network. But on 15 December 2005 the decision was taken to close the ITV News Channel.
The closure was subsequently brought forward and the channel closed down on Friday 23 December 2005 at 18:00 (GMT). The reason given was that it would have been unfair to expect the channel's staff to work long hours over Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
knowing that the channel would soon be closing.
The schedule for the last day of transmission on the ITV News Channel:
- 0700 The Scott Chisholm Show
- 1000 Live with Alastair StewartAlastair StewartAlastair James Stewart OBE is an English journalist and newscaster. Stewart is currently employed by ITN where he is a main newscaster for ITV News.-Early life:...
- 1145 The Scott Chisholm Show
- 1230 ITV Lunchtime News simulcast
- 1330 Live with Faye BarkerFaye BarkerFaye Barker is a British newsreader and journalist currently employed by ITN where she presents on ITV News and ITV London.-Personal life:Faye Barker is from Devon, England and is married. Her wedding took place at Bickleigh Castle, Devon, in 2007...
- 1500 Live with Nicholas Owen and Nina HossainNina HossainNina Hossain is a British journalist, presenter and newscaster.Hossain is currently employed on a freelance basis by ITN where she is the main presenter of ITV London's regional news programme London Tonight. Nina also acts as a relief newscaster for ITV News.-Background:Hossain was born in...
- 1600 Live with Owen ThomasOwen Thomas (journalist)Owen Thomas is a London-based anchor for Bloomberg Television. He has been a news presenter on BBC World News and BBC World Service and an anchor on CNN International.-Journalism career:...
and Faye Barker - 1730 SPECIAL: 5 Years Of the News Channel, presented by Alastair Stewart.
At the end of the final programme, newsreader Alastair Stewart
Alastair Stewart
Alastair James Stewart OBE is an English journalist and newscaster. Stewart is currently employed by ITN where he is a main newscaster for ITV News.-Early life:...
closed the channel with the words:
So that's the end of five years broadcasting as the ITV News Channel. Our thanks to all our contributors, studio and production staff, to all the reporters and correspondents and everyone who made the channel the professional and effective operation that it was. But most of all, you, our viewers. A big thank you to each and every one of you. We hope we both informed and occasionally entertained you over the years. It was our mission to bring you the fastest breaking news and the most comprehensive analysis. We hope that you'll think we succeeded.
The screen then faded out to black followed by a picture of the ITN end board. The station closed shortly afterwards.
Post-closure
On 15 June 2007, ITN chief executive Mark Wood said the company would not rule out launching another 24-hour TV news channel.During 2007 there was some speculation that cable group Virgin Media was considering launching its own news channel to rival Sky News and BBC News, with some reports suggesting that it might look to partner with ITN, but this has not occurred.
The channel used to broadcast live UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
football matches whenever two English teams were playing simultaneously, with the other game being shown on the ITV Network, if ITV2
ITV2
ITV2 is a 24 hour, free-to-air entertainment television channel in the United Kingdom owned by ITV Digital Channels Ltd, a division of ITV plc. It was launched on 7 December 1998, and is available on digital television via satellite, cable, IPTV and terrestrial platforms. The channel has the...
(ITV's former secondary channel to show Champions League games) had a full schedule. When a breaking news bulletin was being reported, the news report would take the full screen while the football would be shown in an inset in the corner.