A round-up of the week’s stories and observations.
- MON 22ND JUL (6.50PM)
BBC News channel to continue dedicated 11pm UK slot - WED 24TH JUL (1PM)
BBC Radio 1 Relax closes today - WED 24TH JUL (1.50PM)
Irish government confirms TV licence to stay for now - THU 25TH JUL (2.10PM)
RTÉ News programmes blocked in Northern Ireland - FRI 26TH JUL (1.30PM)
Channel 5’s late-night live casino fails to appear
Monday 22nd July
6.50pm BBC News channel to continue dedicated 11pm UK slot
UK viewers of the BBC News channel will continue to receive a dedicated service in the 11pm – 11.30pm slot, daily. This will include a short review of front pages.
The late slot is reported to have performed well during the election campaign, when the channel provided UK-specific coverage from late-morning until late-night.
In exceptional cases (e.g., for operational or editorial reasons), the UK opt will be dropped and Singapore/Washington-based programmes will be shown instead.
Having a dedicated, live UK programme at 11pm also means the BBC News channel can transition cleanly from Newsnight (the finish time for the BBC Two programme varies slightly each night).
NOTE: at the time of publishing, BBC EPG data is still showing Newsday at 11pm, across the week. This is expected to be updated soon.
UPDATE: Steve Lai presented tonight’s UK opt.
Wednesday 24th July
1pm BBC Radio 1 Relax closes today
Launched on 22nd April 2021 “to help young audiences, in particular, to manage stress and wellbeing through music and speech content”, the BBC Radio 1 Relax stream on BBC Sounds will close at 2pm today.
Earlier this year, the BBC announced plans for new spin-off stations for BBC Radios 1, 2 and 3, as well as an expanded version of the existing BBC Sounds Radio 1 Dance stream.
The press release about the new stations also included an announcement that BBC Radio 1 Relax would close: “BBC Sounds will stop curating content for its second existing music stream, BBC Radio 1 Relax, which was launched during the pandemic.”
UPDATE: the final minutes of BBC Radio 1 Relax:
1.50pm Irish government confirms TV licence to stay for now
The Irish government has confirmed a “very significant” 3-year funding arrangement for RTÉ.
- TV licence retained at current rate of €160/year – but supplemented by Exchequer funding.
- €725m of public funding over the next three years.
EXTERNAL LINK: €725m funding plan is not a ‘blank cheque’ for RTÉ – Martin.
Thursday 25th July
2.10pm RTÉ News programmes blocked in Northern Ireland
News programming on RTÉ One was blacked out yesterday for Northern Ireland viewers on Freeview, Sky and the RTÉ website.
In a statement today, RTÉ says it has had to geo-block TV news output in Northern Ireland because these programmes will contain footage from the Olympic Games, which it is not licensed to broadcast outside of the Republic of Ireland.
The move has led to much criticism from viewers and politicians in Northern Ireland and Ireland.
UPDATE (25TH JULY 6.45PM): within the last hour, RTÉ says it will lift the block on its TV news programmes in Northern Ireland.
UPDATE (25TH JULY/26TH JULY): RTÉ One news programmes were still blocked in Northern Ireland for Sky viewers on Thursday evening and throughout Friday.
UPDATE (27TH JULY): RTÉ One news programmes are available again to Sky viewers in Northern Ireland.
Friday 26th July
1.30pm Channel 5’s late-night live casino fails to appear
Channel 5’s regular late-night PlayOJO Live Casino Show failed to appear last night.
It was replaced by editions of Caught on Camera.
Meanwhile on Channel 5 + 1, a looped breakdown graphic and pre-recorded apology occupied the casino slot.
RELATED ARTICLE: Timeline: 2024 Week 29.
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Acknowledgements
PICTURED: Steve Lai presenting a UK opt on the BBC News channel. COPYRIGHT: BBC.