Sneaky peak at Autumn Saturday Nights on ITV1 ?

Never sure which forum to post in these days, this isn't about TV presentation more like TV scheduling, I've put it here for now but feel free to move it.  

Saturday night ITV1 Schedule from the Autumn

5.30pm Challenge of a Lifetime
6pm Soapstars
7pm ITV Match of the Day (or some other title)
8pm Who Wants to be a Millionaire
9pm An Audience with (yet to be confirmed)

It looks as if ITV1 will definately be scheduling the Premier League Highlights show at 7pm on Saturday nights in the hope that the 16-24 age group will watch before going out for the night.  Challenge of a Lifetime is the replacement for 'Don't Try This at Home', presented by Claire Sweeney.  'Soapstars' will be hoping to emulate the success of Popstars and Who Wants to Be A Millionaire will return.  After 9pm, ITV1 hope to draw you with 'Event TV', there will be new 'Audience with' shows also, The Comedy Awards, Record of the Year, and the Royal Variety Show.   With the introduction of football to early Saturday nights, Cilla's Moment of Truth will move to Friday nights, although Blind Date is likely to return on Saturdays, probably after 'Soapstars' finishes its run.  ITV1 hope that the football will pull in the key young male audience chased by the advertisers, but fear they may alienate the mums and the grannies.


(Edited by square eyes at 9:18 pm on July 2, 2001)

ITV would be sensible starting their Premiership show @ around 1915 so that when it finishes Casualty has already started. It is then more likely to carry over viewers to its next show.

Hmm So it'll be the beeb for me saturday nights this autumn(not that I usually watch ITV on a saturday night), i'm glad I work and don't get back until 8! I read that and felt sick, what a nuasiating line up of unimaginative populist-ish shows, one word pathetic.

To tell you the truth, Saturday night TV is in terminal decline on all channels, the BBC are set to try more 'Theme Nights' although they will have to be a big improvement on the 'Joy of Text'.

Yeah, true, watch the video rental market improve, i'll just reminice with the hay days of Challenge Aneka, Noels House Party and Casualty - I'm missing something, can't remember what! You can see that the beeb want to get as much use out of their oval video wall, they want to improve on its normal showing of 1.5 times a year(children in need and evry other year comic relief).