Gloves off in the battle of the bongs as Sky takes fight to the BBC
FOR years, the battle of the bongs has raged between the big beasts of ITV and the BBC, each vying to win viewers over to their flagship 10pm news slots.
This week, Sky News is to make its first foray back to the ratings war, as it launches its first 30-minute advert-free
in nearly 20 years in the space temporarily vacated by ITV.
Sky News staff have been told of a new show, described as “smart, polished and precise”, set to launch on Monday night; the first bespoke halfhour 10pm show on the channel since 1999.
Insiders hope it will prove competition for the BBC’s long-established version, as ITV experiments with moving its news out of the slot in favour of a new topical entertainment series,
Initially hosted by David Walliams, it will see celebrity guests appear over an eight-week period in which the news will be pushed back to 10.30pm.
ITV has insisted it is not a permanent move, but Sky is to take advantage of the opening to launch a rival fronted by Anna Botting and Anna Jones. Unusually, it will eschew an ad break to run for half an hour in the slot, seven days a week.
In an email to staff, Cristina Nicolotti Squires, director of content, said: “On Monday night we are launching a new
programme. It will be a smart, polished, precise half-hour, an “appointment to view” programme with its content distilled from the best of Sky News’ journalism across the day.
“It is being launched on the day ITV move their late evening news to 10.30. We want Sky’s News at 10 to be seen as an authoritative alternative to the terrestrial news offerings.” The message added: “This is an exciting opportunity at a time that ITV’s scheduling has given us a real opportunity to shine.”
Currently, the BBC’s 10pm bulletin typically attracts around 4.1 million viewers, whereas ITV’s News at Ten is seen by around 1.8 million each night. Sky’s audiences are typically far lower, with only around 104,000 viewers currently tuning into the 10pm slot.
The new show is aimed at changing that, providing an alternative to the BBC in a polished new format. Huw Edwards, the anchor, said: “I wish Sky well with its new launch. All competition is healthy. And there’s never been a more important time to be offering high-quality, wellresearched, trustworthy news services to viewers.”
ITV executives have insisted that moving the evening news is only temporary, but journalists in the broadcaster’s newsroom are not convinced that the bulletin will return permanently to the 10pm slot.
They are said to be pinning their hopes on Tom Bradby delivering a timely rebuff to ITV executives, as he is tipped to win the presenter of the year prize at the Royal Television Society’s TV journalism awards, which take place on Wednesday. The
is up for the daily news programme of the year award.
An ITV News source said: “The channel claimed they would make the show as important to the ITV brand as Above: Mark Austin and Julie Etchingham presented ITV News in 2008 against a backdrop of Big Ben. A similar scene will greet viewers of the new Sky News offering with Anna Botting, right BBC News at Ten, hosted by Fiona Bruce, left, Huw Edwards and Sophie Raworth, typically attracts more than four million viewers but now they seem intent on pushing the news around. What is so baffling is that the programme is in good shape but now morale is low and people are wondering if the big name hires like Peston will want to stick around.”
A source in the BBC newsroom said that the corporation was not worried by Sky’s new bulletin. “Sky will do extremely well to get even 100,000 viewers,” the source said.