In a significant shake-up of ITV’s daytime programming, Loose Women has been temporarily removed from the schedule to make way for the Cheltenham Festival coverage

Loose Women axed from TV schedules in huge shake-up – and it’s bad news for fans

Loose Women fans have been left unimpressed as the ITV daytime show has been taken off-air this week,

As the annual Cheltenham Festival kicks off for another year, the Loose Women panel have had their schedules cleared this week as the sporting coverage will take over the ITV’s usual afternoon slot. Unfortunately for avid fans of the panel show, the shake-up means that Loose Women won’t air at all for the rest of the week – when it’s usually broadcast every Monday to Friday from 12.30pm.

During Monday’s (March 10) episode of the programme Kaye Adams and her fellow co-stars Jane Moore, Judi Love and Coleen Nolan returned to screens for a jam-packed show celebrating Coleen’s 60th birthday. However at the end of the show, Kaye delivered the bad news to viewers as she announced that the show will not air for the rest of this week and the channel will instead broadcast racing from the Cheltenham Festival.

“That is it for today. Thank you to all of your loved ones and Brenda (Lewis) for flying in from your holiday this morning and most of all to Coleen. “We are off for the rest of the week sadly but we will be back next Wednesday but for now a very very happy 60th to the wonderful Coleen Nolan,” Kaye said.

Loose Women host Kaye Adams forced to issue apology after ‘error’ live on air (Image: ITV)

It’s not just Loose Women that has been scraped from the schedule however. The horse racing event kicked off on Tuesday 11 March and will run until Friday 14 March, with coverage aired to ITV each day.

In order to make way for the festival, which often draws in numerous famous faces, five programmes have been removed from the schedule while others have been moved. After This Morning airs from 10am on ITV1, Loose Women usually follows on straight after, but this week the Cheltenham festival has replaced the panel show, with the main coverage kicking off at 12.45pm.

This Morning has managed to retain it’s slot, the Cat Deeley and Ben Shepherd-fronted show will be finishing 15 minutes earlier than usual. ITV Racing are also running The Opening Show, which is a preview for the day’s activities, on each day of the festival – with this reportedly running from 9am until 10am.

The Cheltenham races are taking over ITV coverage

This means that re-runs of 1980s US drama Magnum P.I. have been removed from the regular schedule, while re-runs of British drama Robin of Sherwood have been pushed forward in the schedule.

With the extensive Cheltenham coverage running right up until 5pm, when business as usual resumes and The Chase airs, shows such as Alan Titchmarsh’s Gardening Club, Tipping Point and Lingo , which usually air after Loose Women, appear to have been axed for the week. Following Cheltenham’s run this week, ITV’s broadcasting schedule is thought to return to its usual running order come Monday 17 March.