It has been claimed that Loose Women will be scrapping its live studio audience when it returns with a reduced schedule next year
ITV have decided to axe a huge part of Loose Women in a desperate bid to save money, it has been reported. It has been claimed that the show will be scrapping its live studio audience when it returns with a reduced schedule next year.
This will come as a major blow to its panellists, who enjoy interacting with the audience as part of the programme. The decision to eliminate the studio audience is reportedly a cost-saving measure, with insiders revealing that it’s a pricey feature due to being managed by an external company, which also provides security and a warmup person.
However, for the presenters, this change is predicted to be a ‘disaster’. This move follows ITV’s announcement of significant budget cuts to their daytime schedule, from reducing Lorraine to 30 minutes and only broadcasting the show during school term times, to slashing Loose Women’s output to 30 weeks a year.
It comes after the Mirror revealed last month that staff fury at the channel is growing over the sweeping cuts, which includes the axing of 220 jobs.
Ruth Langsford is among presenters at Loose Women expected to be affected
Sources have informed MailOnline that key talent on Loose Women are ‘upset’ about the loss of the live studio audience, as it’s what distinguishes the show from Lorraine and Good Morning Britain. There are concerns that viewers may ‘switch off’ completely.
Meanwhile, a source told the Mirror: “While there is a proposal to not have a studio audience for Loose Women from 2026, that doesn’t necessarily mean that we’ll never have a studio audience again, it just won’t be in the same way as it is now. At this stage we are still exploring new ways of working and producing the show when we move to a new studio next year.”
Loose Women panellists such as Ruth Langsford, 65, Kaye Adams, 62, Nadia Sawalha, 60, and Charlene White, 44, have become household names thanks to the ITV show, but that hasn’t stopped big names speaking out about the changes.
The changes are expected to cause job losses across ITV’s morning offering including This Morning, Lorraine and Loose Women, which will be broadcast from a new location in central London while still being produced by ITV Studios.
Good Morning Britain is to be extended by half an hour from January, while Lorraine Kelly’s morning talk show will be reduced to 30 minutes for 30 weeks of the year, ITV said earlier this month.
This Morning, hosted by Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard, will remain in its 10am-12.30pm slot on weekdays through the year, with panel show Loose Women on from 12.30pm to 1.30pm.
Last month, Nadia criticised cuts to ITV daytime’s schedule, saying they have been “absolutely brutal” to production staff and came “out of the blue”. Speaking on her YouTube channel, the former EastEnders actress called conversations about the cuts “misogynistic”.
The Mirror also previously revealed that many are blaming chief executive Carolyn McCall for the “death of daytime” and have criticised her for pocketing a massive £4million salary, including bonus, last year.
