Peston goes head to head with Newsnight

ROBERT PESTON’S Sunday politics show is moving to Wednesday nights, in direction competition with the BBC’S Newsnight.

Peston on Sunday will be re-named Peston and broadcast on ITV after News at Ten. The move pits Peston in competition with Newsnight presenters Evan Davis, Kirsty Wark and Emily Maitlis.

ITV is hoping to capitalise on Newsnight’s ratings decline. The BBC Two show has lost viewers since Jeremy Paxman’s departure in 2014 and currently draws an audience of around 500,000.

When ITV put a current affairs show, After the News, in the same slot last autumn, it beat Newsnight in the ratings.

Peston on Sunday has attracted more viewers in its late-night repeat slot on Sunday nights than its original morning broadcast. Peston said: “I could not be more pleased and excited that Peston on Sunday is moving to a Wednesday night slot, under the shortened name of Peston.

“It has always struck me as significant that Peston on Sunday typically has double or more viewers for its 10.15pm repeat than for its live broadcast at 10am, so I wanted to explore a possible move to first transmission in the evening, and it then seemed natural to change the broadcast day to Wednesday – because this is often the biggest political day of the week, and includes Prime Minister’s Questions.”

The show was launched in 2016 after Peston was poached from the BBC to become ITV’S economics editor. It will return in its new Wednesday night slot this autumn.