Coronavirus | Television News Coverage

If it is a Prime Ministerial Statement - then previously they haven't been very long, maybe 10 minutes maximum. In addition, the actual policy is being announced at 3:30pm in the House of Commons, so will have been discussed and explained in the 6pm news hour on both BBC One and ITV, so there is little need to have further discussion programmes afterward on those channels.

Oh I’m sure they will be and I wouldn’t be surprised if the BBC dragged theirs out to run until 8pm

I'd be surprised if we're into Ministerial Statement territory, given that the detail is to be announced in the HoC first, a 5pm ish presser would seem more likely. The mood music doesn't lend itself to anything surprising warranting a 'Statement' type of broadcast. Broadcasters would prefer this too enabling questioning to follow.

BBC News Channel ticker currently indicating a 7pm update tomorrow from the PM.

I think this is incorrect: https://www.bbc.co.uk/schedules/p00fzl6p/2021/02/22
Currently showing the One Show at 7pm on BBC One - I doubt this will be the case: surely it will be the Prime Minister's statement/press conference?



Unlike you, I'm not surprised if it is a Prime Ministerial statement. Although there is a prior announcement to Parliament, that's because Parliamentary rules like major changes to be announced to the House of Commons first. Surely fewer people watch Parliamentary coverage, even if, on this occasion, it is offset by this being something I suspect people generally are very interested in? Therefore a Prime Ministerial announcement in the early evening, which will catch many people who may be otherwise occupied on work during the day, may well be appropriate. Broadcasters may prefer a press conference, at which they can ask questions. However, this may be the precise reason for not having one. The Government may well prefer a statement, precisely because the media can't ask it questions and seek more detail beyond what was in a statement. The changes can be explained to the public. in an unedited and free way chosen by the Prime Minister, that gets the government message across.

I have no advance knowledge or clue as to what format however. Therefore I have put slash press conference above. Didn't we have a Commons announcement in the afternoon and then an evening PM statement last time? I see no reason why they can't do the same again, unless they need to have the scientific evidence presented to the public and have a conference with Chris Whitty. There is the report in the Guardian saying Chris Whitty is unhappy about a 'big bang' reopening of schools, yet it seems the Government is proposing exactly this, so perhaps they would not want a conference and Chris Whitty to be present so that broadcasters can question him? The scientific evidence might be needed if that is to help persuade people to change their behaviour or is to support the speed (or lack of it) at which the Government are moving, such as justifying the lockdown from a new variant late last year. If that's not the case now and many of the scientists are against the lack of caution the Government appear to me to be going, whilst BBC News is claiming that the Government is moving with caution, then the Government may want a ministerial statement instead. That said, I am legend for misreading the situation so I may be totally wrong for all I know.

Give them a chance to update it, it's Sunday night!

Would I Lie to You always seems to be in the schedules on nights where the BBC may need to sacrifice a programme due to a statement by Boris. I swear this would be the third of fourth time

Based on previous ones it's unlikely they'd update the schedule before tomorrow afternoon anyway. I doubt it's 100% confirmed what format the speech will take anyway - even if they've been tipped off today it's an address things might change tomorrow as they often do. If all he ends up announcing is that people can go for a picnic with someone else (and that seems to be the headline) I'm not sure that would warrant a Primeministerial broadcast.

I had just noticed on the BBC website a story about allegations of fly-tipping in the past half-hour. I found it related to a Panorama programme and thought it was broadcast yesterday (Sunday - that can't be right for some reason) but I had this confusion over dates as I am in that tricky period of the first couple of hours of a new day. It turns out it is yet to be broadcast and is supposed to be broadcast (except in Wales) on BBC One at half past 7 this evening but I imagine, particularly if it turns out to be a press conference, the programme won't be going ahead at 7.30 or will not be going ahead on BBC One. The schedules are still saying, respectively, One Show and then Panorama (allegedly at half past 7) for BBC One and Outside Source for the News Channel but I have learned not to trust anything I read these days. I note your point it likely won't change until much nearer the time.

He'll be announcing, by all accounts, a return to schools which is far more significant than just going for a picnic. However, I don't see why (but then again I often miss the point) even if it was to be just for a picnic announcement, a Prime Minister could not choose to request a ministerial broadcast for that if they wanted. It is however a significant moment: a routemap, starting to come out of a lockdown we've been in for months, it's not just the announcement of a single small thing. As part of my point-missing, I don't see why people should be going for picnics, even if it is to be that they can. The whole thought of people being able to do so fills me with dread to be honest.

I tend to agree. We're dealing with the forces of nature ultimately. How the virus behaves is reasonably predictable. Unfortunately how we behave is driven by emotional responce to perceived risk. Some newspaper headlines are not helpful. Again last night both the BBC and Sky were relaying those headlines by proxy

SCHEDULE CHANGES: BBC One will cover the PM's Press Conference at 7pm with a #BBCNews special 7pm-8:05pm. (#TheOneShow and #Panorama dropped). #EastEnders due on at 8:05pm as scheduled.

No sign (yet) that BBC One will show the PM's address to the Commons at 3:30pm.

— TV Zone (@tvukzone) February 22, 2021

If Would I Lie to You is dropped, we riot.