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GMTV GMTV (an initialism for Good Morning Television), now legally known as ''ITV Breakfast, ITV Breakfast Broadcasting Limited'', was the name of the national ITV (TV network), ITV breakfast television contractor/licensee, broadcasting in the Uni ...
(Good Morning Television) broadcast on ITV. GMTV is the former breakfast television franchise for the UK's ITV network. It began broadcasting on Friday 1 January 1993 and finished on Friday 3 September 2010, being replaced by
ITV Breakfast ITV Breakfast Broadcasting Limited (previously known as ''GMTV, GMTV Limited'') is the national ITV (TV network), ITV breakfast television licensee, broadcasting in the United Kingdom. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of ITV plc in November ...
.


''GMTV''


1993–2000

''GMTV'' is the original brand for GMTV's weekday breakfast magazine programme from 6:00 am. It included national and international news stories, regional news, weather, interviews, cookery and health features, human-interest and showbiz stories, and competitions. In spring 1993, shortly after the channel's launch, a separate news-focused programme was introduced between 6:00am and 7:00 am, which in early 1994 became ''The Reuters News Hour''. The main 6:00–9:00 am programme remained named ''GMTV'' but, as part of the show's new look for the millennium, this main programme later became ''GMTV Today''. On 3 January 2000, ''GMTV'' relaunched and changed the names of each of their programmes. This now meant the programme ''GMTV'' did not exist. This was then split up into ''The Newshour'' and ''GMTV Today''. This titling for the programmes remained until January 2009, when ''GMTV'' relaunched. The first presenters were: *
Eamonn Holmes Eamonn Holmes (; born 3 December 1959) is a Northern Irish broadcaster and journalist. He co-presented the breakfast television show ''GMTV'' (1993–2005) for ITV, before presenting ''Sunrise'' (2005–2016) for Sky News. Holmes co-presente ...
* Anne Davies * Michael Wilson *
Fiona Armstrong Fiona Armstrong, Lady MacGregor (born 28 November 1956), is a British television journalist and is Lord Lieutenant of Dumfries. She is also the author of several books and has written for newspapers and made television programmes on Scottish t ...
*
Lorraine Kelly Lorraine Kelly (born 30 November 1959) is a Scottish television presenter. She has presented various television shows for ITV and STV, including '' Good Morning Britain'' (1988–1992), ''GMTV'' (1993–2010), ''This Morning'' (2003–2005, ...


2009–2010

''GMTV'' underwent a major revamp on 5 January 2009, reverting to its original title, and incorporating the ''GMTV Newshour'' into the show as well. The show returned with a new set and new onscreen graphics. For the first time since the station's launch the logo was changed from the 'sun' logo. Despite the changes, the same theme music and headline beds were still used throughout the programme and nothing altered with the weather until 18 January 2010. However, on 9 March 2009, ''GMTV'' introduced a new theme music and headline beds to its main programmes, replacing the previous music that had been in use since 2000. On 31 August 2009, ''GMTV'' saw the introduction of 3D graphics, graphic animations, through the use of a new system called VizRT, and a voice-over announcer to introduce presenters at the top of the hour. These were later slightly revised in October of that year. The show had previously been criticised for its poor journalistic approach although from 2009 it took on a more confident approach, with 7-minute bulletins at the top of the hour, a detailed bulletin at half-past the hour, and the ''Top Stories'' at 15 and 45 minutes past each hour. These replaced the hour and half-hour bulletins which featured previously. Fiona Phillips and Andrea McLean left the show in late 2008. In November 2008 it was announced that ''
Sky News Sky News is a British free-to-air television news channel, live stream news network and news organisation. Sky News is distributed via an English-language radio news service, and through online channels. It is owned by Sky Group, a division of ...
'' business presenter Emma Crosby would replace Phillips, and the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
's Kirsty McCabe would replace McLean as weather presenter. Aside from the new members of the team, previous presenters continued to present in their previous slots and, from August 2009, a voice-over at the top of the hour referred to the show as ''GMTV with ...''. This continued until Penny Smith left on 4 June 2010, with the same presenters on air from 6:00–8:35/9:25 am. In November 2009,
ITV plc ITV plc is a British media company that holds 13 of the 15 regional television licences that make up the ITV (TV network), ITV network (Channel 3), the oldest and largest commercial terrestrial television network in the United Kingdom. ITV plc ...
took full control of the broadcaster after purchasing
The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was founded on October 16 ...
's 25% share. * The editor of ''GMTV'', Martin Frizell, quit his role, as Disney's share of the company was sold, and was replaced temporarily by Sue Walton. It was announced on 7 May 2010 that former ''
The One Show ''The One Show'' is a British television magazine and chat show programme. Broadcast live on BBC One weekdays at 7:00 pm, it features topical stories and studio guests. It is currently co-hosted by Alex Jones, Roman Kemp, Ronan Keating ...
'' editor Ian Rumsey would take on the role as of June 2010, with Paul Connolly as his deputy.Ian Rumsey made GMTV editor
The Guardian, 7 May 2010
* On 4 March 2010, it was announced that presenter and newsreader Penny Smith was leaving ''GMTV'', with presenter John Stapleton being redeployed as special correspondent.GMTV stars Penny Smith and John Stapleton leave the sofa in cut backs
Daily Mirror, 4 March 2010
* On 19 April 2010, it was announced that ''
The One Show ''The One Show'' is a British television magazine and chat show programme. Broadcast live on BBC One weekdays at 7:00 pm, it features topical stories and studio guests. It is currently co-hosted by Alex Jones, Roman Kemp, Ronan Keating ...
'' presenter
Adrian Chiles Adrian Chiles (born 21 March 1967) is a British writer and television and radio presenter. He has co-presented both '' The One Show'' (2007–2010) and '' Daybreak'' (2010–2011) with Christine Lampard. He was also the chief presenter for fo ...
was quitting his roles with the corporation, to join ITV on a six-year contract. * On 21 April 2010, it was confirmed that Ben Shephard was quitting ''GMTV'' after 10 years, after earlier telling management he would not be renewing his contract. His two-year contract ended in April 2010; however, he stayed with ''GMTV'' until July 2010. He then focused on a number of new projects with ITV and other channels. * On 4 June 2010, Penny Smith left ''GMTV'' with John Stapleton presenting on location. From 7 June, Andrew Castle, Emma Crosby, Kate Garraway and Ben Shephard presented from 6 am–8.30 am with Stapleton taking on a new role of special correspondent and providing cover when the male anchors were absent. * On 11 June 2010 it was confirmed that Andrew Castle was quitting ''GMTV'' in September after 10 years with the company. * On 9 July 2010 it was confirmed that the ''GMTV'' programme would be axed in favour of '' Daybreak''. * On 30 July 2010, Ben Shephard left ''GMTV'', and from 2 August, Andrew Castle presented most days alongside Emma Crosby or Kate Garraway, with special correspondent John Stapleton providing cover. * GMTV came to an end on 3 September 2010, featuring Andrew Castle and Emma Crosby as hosts.


''GMTV with Lorraine''

The show featured the latest fashion, food and celebrity gossip, hosted by
Lorraine Kelly Lorraine Kelly (born 30 November 1959) is a Scottish television presenter. She has presented various television shows for ITV and STV, including '' Good Morning Britain'' (1988–1992), ''GMTV'' (1993–2010), ''This Morning'' (2003–2005, ...
. There was also regular specialist guests, who made regular appearances. Due to Lorraine living in
Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
, Monday and Tuesday episodes were broadcast live, with Wednesday and Thursday's shows pre-recorded and broadcast as live. The show's target audience was women, therefore during events such as ''Fashion Week'', the programme broadcast live from location with fashion expert Mark Heyes.


History

Lorraine Kelly first began presenting ''Top of the Morning'' in January 1993. In March when
Fiona Armstrong Fiona Armstrong, Lady MacGregor (born 28 November 1956), is a British television journalist and is Lord Lieutenant of Dumfries. She is also the author of several books and has written for newspapers and made television programmes on Scottish t ...
walked out of the main ''GMTV'' show, Lorraine moved to the ''GMTV'' slot and Fern Britton and Amanda Redington took over hosting ''Top of the Morning''. ''Top of the Morning'' was produced by an independent production company. In 1994 it was replaced with the GMTV-produced ''Quarter to Nine''. In June 1994, Kelly went on maternity leave, returning in November 1994 to do a mother and baby slot. This led to her becoming the main presenter of ''Nine O'Clock Live''. The show proved so popular that it moved to the earlier 8:35 am slot had been retitled ''Lorraine Live'' in the Autumn 1997. The main guest host for Lorraine Kelly when she was ill or on holiday, was Fiona Phillips, but after the birth of Fiona's children, she shared the job with Andrea McLean. Occasionally when neither were available, guest hosts were drafted in like
Dale Winton Dale Jonathan Winton (22 May 1955 – 18 April 2018) was an English radio DJ and television presenter. He presented the shows '' Supermarket Sweep'' from 1993 until 2001 and again in 2007, the National Lottery game show '' In It to Win It' ...
and
Paul O'Grady Paul James O'Grady (14 June 1955 – 28 March 2023) was an English comedian, broadcaster, drag queen, actor, and writer. He achieved notability in the London gay scene during the 1980s with his drag persona Lily Savage, through which he gained ...
. After 2008, once both Andrea and Fiona had left, guest hosts were drafted in. In January 2000, as ''GMTV'' rebranded to ''GMTV Today'', and Lorraine's show changed its name to ''LK Today''. As part of the later rebrand that took place at the start of 2009, the show again changed its title to ''GMTV with Lorraine'', to coincide with ''GMTV Today'' changing back to ''GMTV''. Lorraine moved for the first time into the main ''GMTV'' studio, instead of having her own part of the studio to host from. In November 2009, ITV plc took full control of the broadcaster after purchasing The Walt Disney Company's 25% share. The format of the show between January and September 2010 included Lorraine giving a brief introduction describing what was coming up on the show, before discussing the main stories from the morning's newspapers with a male and female reviewer. The show's first guests tended to be interviewed next; however, some days there would be money-saving advice from Martin Lewis or a fashion feature from Mark Heyes in that slot. A news summary was shown at 9:00 am presented by Penny Smith or
Helen Fospero Helen Fospero (née Morton; born 30 August 1966) is an English television presenter and journalist, best known for her presenting roles on shows such as ''GMTV'', ''Daybreak (2010 TV programme), Daybreak'', and ''Lorraine (TV programme), Lorra ...
, followed by a brief weather summary from
Clare Nasir Clare Lyn Nasir (born 20 June 1970) is an English meteorologist, author, and TV presenter. Early life Born in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, Nasir's family is musical, with Nasir playing the saxophone, while three of her brothers are profess ...
or Kirsty McCabe. The chef who was appearing that week then cooked the dish for the day in the GMTV kitchen, before the final guests made their appearance. The competition that ran on ''GMTV'' also appeared throughout the show. The programme was sponsored by
Matalan Matalan Retail Ltd is a British clothing and homewares retailer based in Knowsley, Merseyside, founded by John Hargreaves in 1985. In August 1988, its operations director at the time, Duncan Sullivan, transformed Matalan into an out-of-town wa ...
and
Actimel Actimel (known as DanActive in the United States and Canada) is a probiotic yogurt-type drink produced by the French company Danone. Actimel earned over €1.4 billion (US$1.8 billion) in retail sales in 2006. History Actimel was invented ...
. For 2010, the GMTV kitchen was introduced which would involve a chef appearing for the entire week cooking their dish at 9:00 am. The kitchen was set up in the area where the news desk was usually positioned, however, when GMTV moved to Studio 3, the kitchen faced a new look, and the position of it moved. In April 2010 to make ''GMTV'''s programming more consistent, ''GMTV with Lorraine'' began airing all year round, instead of breaking during school holidays, with guest presenters. For the first week of the school holidays,
ITV News ITV News is the branding of news programmes on the British news television channel of ITV (TV network), ITV. ITV has a long tradition of television news. ITN, Independent Television News (ITN) was founded to provide news bulletins for the netwo ...
anchor
Nina Hossain Nina Hossain is a British journalist and presenter employed by ITN as the lead presenter of the '' ITV Lunchtime News''. Background Hossain was born in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England to a Bangladeshi father and an English mother. Her f ...
presented the show, with
Ruth Langsford Ruth Wendy Langsford (born 17 March 1960) formerly known as Ruth Holmes is an English television presenter. She has presented various television shows, including ''This Morning (TV programme), This Morning'' (1999–2022), of which she is the ...
presenting the following week. On 9 July 2010, as well as the announcement that ''GMTV'' had been axed to make way for ''Daybreak'', it was also revealed that Lorraine's new programme ''
Lorraine Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...
'' would replace ''GMTV with Lorraine''.A new dawn for GMTV
GMTV, 12 July 2010
On 16 July 2010, Lorraine presented her last show before leaving, and throughout the summer holidays Fiona Phillips,
Emma Bunton Emma Lee Bunton (born 21 January 1976) is an English singer, songwriter, media personality, and actress. She rose to fame in the 1990s as a member of the Pop music, pop group the Spice Girls, in which she was nicknamed Baby Spice, reflecting the ...
and Kirsty Gallacher each presented her show for two weeks.Fiona Phillips will return to GMTV sofa
GMTV, 16 July 2010
Myleene Klass Myleene Angela Klass (born 6 April 1978) is an English musician, singer, television presenter and model. She was a member of the pop group Hear'Say, and later released two solo classical crossover albums in 2003 and 2007. More recently, Klass ...
presented the final week of the show.


''Newshour''

''Newshour'' was launched in March 1993, and was GMTV's weekday news-oriented breakfast programme, broadcasting for an hour from the start of GMTV's weekday broadcast at 6:00am. From 21 February 1994 it was contracted out to
Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency ...
, and by April the viewing figures had increased from 200,000 to just over 1 million. The programme included national and international news stories, regional news, weather and newspaper reviews, plus various guests, and was designed to be more serious than the lighter and more tabloid ''GMTV Today'' programme which followed. From January 2009, the ''Newshour'' title was scrapped, and the programme was merged with ''GMTV Today'' to create one ''GMTV'' name again. The same presenters from ''Newshour'' continued to present the 6:00am to 7:00am slot until June 2010 ( Penny Smith and John Stapleton)


''GMTV Today''

''GMTV Today'' was GMTV's flagship weekday breakfast programme, comprising national and international news stories, regional news, weather, human-interest features and competitions. It was also designed to be more lighter and friendlier against the ''Newshour'' which preceded it. The original presenters were
Eamonn Holmes Eamonn Holmes (; born 3 December 1959) is a Northern Irish broadcaster and journalist. He co-presented the breakfast television show ''GMTV'' (1993–2005) for ITV, before presenting ''Sunrise'' (2005–2016) for Sky News. Holmes co-presente ...
and Lorraine Kelly. Kelly was replaced by Anthea Turner in 1994, but she left in December 1996. From 1997, Fiona Phillips presented alongside
Eamonn Holmes Eamonn Holmes (; born 3 December 1959) is a Northern Irish broadcaster and journalist. He co-presented the breakfast television show ''GMTV'' (1993–2005) for ITV, before presenting ''Sunrise'' (2005–2016) for Sky News. Holmes co-presente ...
(Monday to Wednesday) and Andrew Castle and Kate Garraway (Thursday to Friday). In April 2005 when Holmes left, he was replaced by relief and ''Entertainment Today'' presenter, Ben Shephard. When GMTV relaunched in 2009, it merged with the ''Newshour'' with ''Today'' to try and a recreate a more news-based content throughout the entirety of the show and create consistency. Part of the relaunch were due to the significant presenter changes. These included the departure of Fiona Phillips and Andrea McLean, who were replaced by Emma Crosby and Kirsty McCabe. The same presenters from ''Today'' continued to present the 7:00am to 8:30/9:25am slot until June 2010, and then 6:00am to 8:30/9:25am slot until the demise of the show.


''Sunday Best''

''Sunday Best'' was GMTV's original Sunday magazine programme, launched in January 1993. It was originally intended to be a Sunday edition of the regular weekday programme, featuring the regular lifestyle and human interest stories, interviews, and news bulletins. Originally it aired from 7:20 am–8:50 am and was hosted by
Eamonn Holmes Eamonn Holmes (; born 3 December 1959) is a Northern Irish broadcaster and journalist. He co-presented the breakfast television show ''GMTV'' (1993–2005) for ITV, before presenting ''Sunrise'' (2005–2016) for Sky News. Holmes co-presente ...
and Anne Davies. By the start of March it was moved to 6:30 am–8:00 am. However, as part of the station's relaunch in April 1993, Eamonn Holmes moved to become the main anchor of the weekday ''GMTV'' programme with Mike Morris replacing him. It was reduced to a 60-minute slot from 7:00 am–8:00 am, from 25 April 1993. ''Sunday Best'' started to introduce more political aspects to the programme, and over time moved from being a general magazine programme to become a weekly political programme. Anne Davies, left the programme in January 1994 when the format started to change to increase the amount of current affairs. Mike Morris, left in mid September after being unhappy with the refocus of the programmes.
Roy Hattersley Roy Sydney George Hattersley, Baron Hattersley, (born 28 December 1932) is a British politician, author and journalist from Sheffield. A member of the Labour Party, he was MP for Birmingham Sparkbrook for over 32 years from 1964 to 1997, and ...
was drafted in to present. The last programme was on 9 October 1994. It was suddenly replaced the following Sunday on 16 October 1994 by ''The Sunday Review'' (a 60-minute signed review of the week's news which had been broadcasting since early 1993 under the name "Timeshift"), and ''The Sunday Programme'', shortly after Mike Morris left GMTV, stating that ''Sunday Best'' was becoming too political for a Sunday morning.Morning Glory: A History of British Breakfast Television By Ian Jones P166 ASIN: B009Q5O6J6


''The Sunday Programme''

''The Sunday Programme'' was GMTV's political programme. It launched on 16 October 1994 as a replacement for ''Sunday Best'', which was GMTV's original Sunday morning magazine. The programme aired between 7:00 am and 8:00 am, just after ''The Sunday Review'' (a 60-minute signed review of the week's news). It was originally presented by
Alastair Stewart Alastair James Stewart OBE (born 22 June 1952) is a retired English journalist and newscaster. Stewart joined Southern Television in 1976, then joined ITN in 1980, where he served three years with ''Channel 4 News'' and went on to become a ma ...
, who left in 2001, and Steve Richards took over. From 1995 to 2001, the programme was called ''Alastair Stewart's Sunday Programme'', but this was changed when Alastair left in 2001. In 2008, the programme was quietly axed and replaced with children's programming.


''Entertainment Today''

''Entertainment Today'' was GMTV's entertainment round-up show on Fridays, designed to replace ''LK Today'' at the end of the week. It aired at 8:40am. The programme was broadcast for 45 minutes, and included interviews with actors/actresses from upcoming movies and music performances. Presented by Ben Shephard and Jenni Falconer originally, as Ben started to present more during the week for ''GMTV'', Michael Underwood was also introduced as a presenter. In 2008 the show was replaced by '' The Richard Arnold Show'' in July, which aired for six weeks. After the show's run, Entertainment Today didn't return, and instead the main ''GMTV Today'' show was extended to 9:25am every Friday.


''The Richard Arnold Show''

''The Richard Arnold Show'' first aired in the summer of 2007, as a replacement for '' Entertainment Today'' whilst it took a six-week break. It aired in the same slot as ''Entertainment Today''; Fridays at 8:40am. The programme was broadcast for 45 minutes, and included TV related guests and entertainment features. The show returned again in the summer of 2008, due to the popularity, for another six-week series. GMTV's TV critic Richard Arnold was at the helm. The following week, '' GMTV Today'' extended its on-air time to 9:25am, as it was decided that ''Entertainment Today'' would not return.


Children's programmes


''Eat Your Words''

Eat Your Words was a game show created by Clive Doig in which kids had to solve challenges linked to words and food. The series started on 12 February 1994 with
Konnie Huq Konnie Huq (born Kanak Asha Huq ; on 17 July 1975) is a British television and radio presenter, screenwriter and children's author. She became the longest-serving female presenter of the British children's television programme '' Blue Peter'', ...
and
Mark Speight Mark Warwick Fordham Speight (6 August 1965 – 7 April 2008) was an English television presenter and host of children's art programme ''SMart''. Speight was born in Seisdon, Staffordshire, and left school at 16 to become a cartoonist. He t ...
. In 1995 Simon Parkin become the presenter and was joined by Julia Binsted. The series ended on 24 February 1996.


''Toonattik''

: ''Toonatik'' was the
flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...
children A child () is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking ...
's strand of
GMTV GMTV (an initialism for Good Morning Television), now legally known as ''ITV Breakfast, ITV Breakfast Broadcasting Limited'', was the name of the national ITV (TV network), ITV breakfast television contractor/licensee, broadcasting in the Uni ...
(known as
CITV CITV is a British children's morning programming block on ITV2 and formerly a free-to-air channel owned by ITV plc. CITV, then Children's ITV, launched on 3 January 1983 as a late afternoon programming block on the ITV network for children aged ...
at weekends). It began on 5 February 2005 and was presented by Jamie Rickers and Anna Williamson. The strand aired on Saturdays and Sundays from 7:25 am until GMTV's closedown at 9:25 am. The original slot featured games, competitions and studio guests combined with the American imported cartoons. However, on 6 March 2010 it was reported that ''Toonattik'' and ''Action Stations!'' presenters Jamie and Anna would be made redundant,Children's TV presenters lose their jobs as GMTV bosses continue to wield the axe
Mirror, 6 March 2010
as part of
ITV plc ITV plc is a British media company that holds 13 of the 15 regional television licences that make up the ITV (TV network), ITV network (Channel 3), the oldest and largest commercial terrestrial television network in the United Kingdom. ITV plc ...
's buyout of Disney's 25% share in GMTV. So on Sunday 9 May 2010, Jamie and Anna departed and from the following weekend, the slot relaunched with out-of-vision presentation. From that point ''Toonattik'' also featured British cartoons. As of 12 March 2006, GMTV simulcasted ''Toonattik'' on the
CITV CITV is a British children's morning programming block on ITV2 and formerly a free-to-air channel owned by ITV plc. CITV, then Children's ITV, launched on 3 January 1983 as a late afternoon programming block on the ITV network for children aged ...
channel during their allocated broadcast time, allowing younger Sky Digital,
Virgin Media Virgin Media Limited is a British telecommunications company which provides telephone, television and internet services in the United Kingdom. Its headquarters are at Green Park in Reading, England. It is owned by Virgin Media O2, a 50:50 ...
and
Freeview Freeview may refer to: *Freeview (Australia), the marketing name for the digital terrestrial television platform in Australia *Freeview (New Zealand), a digital satellite and digital terrestrial television platform in New Zealand *Freeview (UK), a ...
viewers to access the show through the children's section of the
EPG Electronic programming guides (EPGs) and interactive programming guides (IPGs) are menu-based systems that provide users of television, radio, and other media applications with continuously updated menus that display scheduling information fo ...
for the first time. Also, for the first time on the EPG it gave details for the programmes broadcast in the ''Toonattik'' time slot.


''Action Stations!''

: ''Action Stations!'' was the
flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...
children A child () is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking ...
's strand of the British
breakfast television Breakfast television (Europe and Australia) or morning show (Canada and the United States) is a type of news broadcasting, news or infotainment television programme that broadcasts Live television, live in the morning (typically broadcast pro ...
station, GMTV2 (branded as part of
CITV CITV is a British children's morning programming block on ITV2 and formerly a free-to-air channel owned by ITV plc. CITV, then Children's ITV, launched on 3 January 1983 as a late afternoon programming block on the ITV network for children aged ...
). The slot aired between 06:00 and 08:40 on the
CITV CITV is a British children's morning programming block on ITV2 and formerly a free-to-air channel owned by ITV plc. CITV, then Children's ITV, launched on 3 January 1983 as a late afternoon programming block on the ITV network for children aged ...
channel. It began broadcasting on 13 March 2006 and was simulcast on both the CITV channel and
ITV2 ITV2 is a Television in the United Kingdom, British free-to-air television channel owned by ITV Digital Channels, a division of ITV plc. It was launched on 7 December 1998. For a number of years, it had the largest audience share after the fiv ...
; however, it moved to
ITV4 ITV4 is a British free-to-air television channel which first aired on 1 November 2005. It is owned by ITV plc. The channel focuses primarily on general entertainment programming targeting a male audience, including action series and films, ...
on 17 March 2008, meaning that ITV2 could broadcast 24 hours a day. From 7 June 2010, ITV4 ceased simulcasting, meaning that from early June 2010, GMTV2 could only be seen on the CITV channel, again allowing ITV4 to broadcast 24 hours a day.GMTV2 moves to CITV
Digital Spy, 12 July 2010
Originally, ''Action Stations!'' featured the voices of ''Toonattik'' presenters Jamie Rickers and Anna Williamson in the form of robots with pre-recorded links in between cartoons, and was later voiced by Mike Rance as a spaceship captain. Between September 2009 and May 2010, the slot had the presenters presenting links from the ''Action Station''s 'space base'. ''Action Stations!'' featured characters Commander Action (David Kangas), Boogaloo (Serial #80064100) (Simon Fielding), Gribulous Bertnarg "Bert" Pimplewicks (Mike Rance) and Princess Akira, the ship's mechanic (Anna Singleton). These characters travelled the galaxy transmitting cartoons 'free to air' to the children of earth whilst trying to keep them from the clutches of the evil Dr Poopanski (James Hunt) who wanted to keep the cartoons for himself.


''Diggit/Diggin' It''

''Diggit/Diggin' It'' was one of GMTV's weekend children's programmes, which began on 14 March 1998 and replaced '' Wake Up in the Wild Room''. It also replaced '' Disney Club'' on Sunday mornings. It was broadcast from 7:10am to 9:25am on Saturdays and 8:00am to 9:25am on Sundays. Additional editions on bank holidays and summer holidays were shown under the name ''Diggit Extra''. Initially, the show was presented by Paul Ballard (known on screen as Des) and Fearne Cotton. On Des's weekends off, the show was often co-presented by
Reggie Yates Reginald Yates (born 31 May 1983) is a British television presenter, actor, writer and director with a career spanning three decades on screen as an actor, television presenter and radio DJ. Yates played Leo Jones in ''Doctor Who'' and has wo ...
. In September 1998, the show launched a search for a new presenter (similar to the one that discovered Fearne a few years earlier). Viewers had the chance to vote for a winner in December 1998; the winner was Jack Stratton. Jack co-presented with Des and Fearne on both shows for a time, before becoming a solo presenter of pre-recorded inserts on the Sunday show. He was asked to leave the show due to end of contract, and in 2000 Fearne also left to concentrate on her other CITV series, the reins being handed over to Laura Jaye and Victoria Hickson. Des left the show in 2002 and GMTV relaunched the show as ''Diggin' It'' in January 2003, including a giant puppet named "It". Laura and Victoria also left and were replaced with Liam Dolan (previously a presenter on
CBBC CBBC is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content for children aged 6 to 12. Its sister c ...
) and Abbie Pethullis, with voiceovers from Phil Gallagher. From 2003, for the first time ''Diggin' It'' was allowed to have its presenters discussing the weekend's line-up on ''CITV'' every Friday afternoon. Liam Dolan was seen sending a Happy Birthday message to ''CITV'' on 3 January 2003 on behalf of the ''Diggin'It'' team. The show was dropped on 30 January 2005 to make way for the merger of ''Diggin' It'' and ''Up on The Roof'' into '' Toonattik''.


''Saturday Disney''

''Saturday Disney'' was GMTV's first children's programme, broadcast from 2 January 1993 to 30 March 1996 on Saturday mornings. Initially presented by Stuart Miles and Pippa Ford-Jones, with other presenters including Tara Lynne O'Neill, was a mixture of Disney cartoons old and new, celebrity guests, games and features. The set featured a wonky house, an 'outside' area (which was in fact still the studio), a jail cell, and an area known as 'The splatter dome'. The entire set was deliberately cartoon-like in appearance. After around 5 months into the series, Pippa was suddenly dropped from the show. The reasons surrounding her departure are not clear. At first Stuart told the audience that "Pippa isn't here this week" and introduced Carmen Ejogo as a stand-in. Pippa never returned and was soon removed from the opening title sequence. However, some pre-recorded location items featuring Pippa were shown over the weeks after her departure. Carmen remained as the female presenter on a permanent basis, and after the departure of Stuart, become the sole presenter until the show's later demise. Disney cartoons were the main staple, of which the show was built around. GMTV came under criticism for extending the show's running time in early 1993. After just 3 months in April 1993, GMTV replaced '' Teen Win Lose Or Draw'' which ran from 8:50 to 9:25am with a newly imported cartoon '' Darkwing Duck'' which ran under the ''Saturday Disney'' strand. It was said that GMTV were putting ratings and advertising revenues before educational values. In May 1995 the series was reduced to finish at 08.50 to allow ''
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers ''Mighty Power Rangers'' (''MMPR'') is an American superhero television series that premiered on August 28, 1993, on the Fox Kids programming block. It is the first entry of the ''Power Rangers'' franchise, and became a 1990s popular culture, ...
'' to be shown.


''Wake Up in the Wild Room''

''Wake Up in the Wild Room'' was a children's programme broadcast from 13 April 1996 to 7 March 1998 on Saturday mornings. Produced in partnership with Disney, it was presented by
Dave Benson Phillips Dave Benson Phillips (born 3 February 1965) is a British entertainer, comic, children's television presenter and wrestler. He has presented '' Playhouse Disney'' (1998–2006), '' Fun Song Factory'' (1994–1999), and the CBBC game show '' Get ...
. The grand finale at the end of the show had a game where contests had to pick a number from the Big House (e.g. number 5 was a window, number 9 was a roof) but would have to watch out for traps which could result with a pie being thrown in their face by resident pie thrower Gary The Ghost, who wore white ghost makeup and a
milkman Milk delivery is a Delivery (commerce), delivery service dedicated to supplying milk, typically in milk bottle, bottles or cartons, to customers' homes. This service is performed by a milkman, milkwoman, or milk deliverer. (In contrast, a Cowman ...
's uniform. Gary also pied various celebrity interview guests, most notably
Donna Air Donna Marie Theresa Air (born 2 August 1979) is an English actress, producer and philanthropist. Early life and education Donna Marie Theresa Air was born on 2 August 1979, in Gosforth, North Tyneside, to receptionist Marie (née Lackenby) and ...
, who had uttered a word which had been deemed taboo for that episode's duration.


''The Disney Club''/''Disney Adventures''/''Road Hog''

''The Disney Club'' started on 3 September 1989 and was produced by
Scottish Television Scottish Television (now legally known as STV Central Limited) is the ITV (TV network), ITV network franchisee for Central Belt, Central Scotland. The channel — the largest of the three ITV franchises in Scotland — has been in operation si ...
and Buena Vista International Television, and went out on Sundays at 9:25 am. The programme mainly broadcast from September – April, taking a spring and summer break. Original presenters * (1989–1992): Andrea Boardman, John Eccleston Richard Orford * (1992–1993) Andrea Boardman, Paul Hendy, Richard Orford In January 1993, the series was moved to also broadcast on
GMTV GMTV (an initialism for Good Morning Television), now legally known as ''ITV Breakfast, ITV Breakfast Broadcasting Limited'', was the name of the national ITV (TV network), ITV breakfast television contractor/licensee, broadcasting in the Uni ...
and overlapped past 9:25 am cut off time. It continued to be produced by Scottish Television, which was one of the owners of GMTV at the time. By September 1993 the series had moved back to 9:25 am, with Jenny Powell replacing Andrea Boardman. A new programme called ''Disney Adventures'' with Andrea Boardman, which filled the time slot instead. When the series returned on 4 September 1994, the series had once again moved back to broadcast during
GMTV GMTV (an initialism for Good Morning Television), now legally known as ''ITV Breakfast, ITV Breakfast Broadcasting Limited'', was the name of the national ITV (TV network), ITV breakfast television contractor/licensee, broadcasting in the Uni ...
overlapped the 9:25 am cut off time, by starting at 8 am. Philippa Forrester joined the team, alongside Richard Orford, with Andrea Boardman continuing with inserts films. ''Disney Adventures'' returned on 6 May 1995 with Sally Gray, Jenny Powel, Jocelyn Barker and
Yvette Fielding Yvette Paula Fielding (born 23 September 1968) is an English television presenter, producer, actress, writer and paranormal investigator. In 1987, aged 18, she became the youngest presenter on the BBC television programme '' Blue Peter''. With h ...
presenting instead of Andrea, continuing until October 1995. Disney Club Returned on 5 November 1995, with new presenters Craig Doyle, Jenny Powel and Sean Maguire. The last series from September 1997 became two separate Disney blocks, but presented by the same people; Craig Doyle & Paul 'Des' Ballard with a name change taking place on 25 September called ''Road Hog''. The series finished on 26 April 1998,BFI.org
/ref> replaced by '' Diggit''.


''Up on the Roof''

''Up on the Roof'' was one of GMTV's children's slots, presented by Jamie Rickers, broadcast from June 2001 to February 2005. It was regularly broadcast on Sundays only from around 8:15am straight after '' Diggit/Diggin' It'' until 9:25am when GMTV handed over to CITV. The cartoon series that were shown were mainly those that featured such action animated programmes as ''
He-Man He-Man is a superhero and the protagonist of the sword and planet ''Masters of the Universe'' franchise, which includes a toy line, several animated television series, comic books, and a feature film. He-Man is characterized by his superhuman s ...
'', ''
Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appearance, first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in ...
'' and ''
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' (''TMNT'') is an American media franchise created by comic book artists Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. It follows Leonardo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Leonardo, Donatello (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), D ...
''. ''Up on The Roof'' came to an end on Sunday 30 January 2005 and was replaced by '' Toonattik'' from 5 February, broadcast on both Saturdays and Sundays.


''Parkin's In'' / ''Fun In The Sun''

''Parkin's In'' and ''Fun In The Sun'' was a children's programme presented by Simon Parkin. The series only appeared during school holidays including half term, usually from 8:35 am to 9:25 am. It was filled with cartoons, guests and Mr Motivator. During the early years additional programmes were produced for Scotland only, due to different holidays. The series ended by 1996.


Programmes

*'' Maxie's World'' *''
Alvin and the Chipmunks Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks and billed for their first two decades as the Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for Novelty records in ...
'' *'' Tom & Jerry Kids'' *'' Galaxy High'' *'' Captain Planet and the Planeteers'' *''
The Legend of Zelda is a media franchise, video game series created by the Japanese game designers Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka. It is primarily developed and published by Nintendo; some portable installments and re-releases have been outsourced to Flags ...
'' *'' The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!'' *''
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers ''Mighty Power Rangers'' (''MMPR'') is an American superhero television series that premiered on August 28, 1993, on the Fox Kids programming block. It is the first entry of the ''Power Rangers'' franchise, and became a 1990s popular culture, ...
'' *'' V.R. Troopers''


Pre-school programmes


''Rise and Shine''

''Rise and Shine'' was GMTV's very first Saturday morning children's series, starting on 2 January 1993. It was presented by Kate Weston and Paul Zerdin along with Paul's puppet character Sam. The series was aimed at younger kids and was broadcast between 4 and 8. It featured cartoons and programmes such as ''
Count Duckula ''Count Duckula'' is a British children's television series, children's animated comedy horror television series created by British studio Cosgrove Hall Films, Cosgrove Hall Productions and produced by Thames Television as a spin-off of ''Dang ...
'', '' Roobarb'', '' The Shoe People'', '' King Rollo'', ''
Towser Towser is a British series of children's books created by veteran children's writer and illustrator Tony Ross and published by Anderson Press. The series is about an intelligent dog, Towser, and his friends The King, The Wizard, Dr. Smelly and ...
'', '' Victor & Maria'' '' James the Cat'', '' Mio Mao'', '' Barbapapa'', '' Rosie and Jim'', '' Mr Men'', ''Ric the Raven'', ''
My Little Pony ''My Little Pony'' (''MLP'') is a toy line and media franchise developed by American toy company Hasbro. The first toys were developed by Bonnie Zacherle, Charles Muenchinger, and Steve D'Aguanno, and were produced in 1981. The ponies feature ...
'', ''
The Wombles ''The Wombles'' are fictional pointy-nosed, furry creatures created by Elisabeth Beresford and originally appearing in a series of children's novels from 1968. They live in burrows, where they aim to help the environment by collecting and recycl ...
'', '' Gran'', ''
Barney & Friends ''Barney & Friends'' is an American children's television series created by Sheryl Leach targeted at children ages two to five. The flagship production of the ''Barney'' franchise, it originally aired on PBS under the PBS Kids brand from Ap ...
'', ''
The Glo Friends ''The Glo Friends'' is an American animated television series that originally aired in 1986 as a segment of '' My Little Pony 'n Friends''. Produced by Sunbow Productions and Marvel Productions in collaboration with Toei Animation, the 26 segmen ...
'', '' MoonDreamers'', '' Potato Head Kids'', '' Fred Basset'', '' Rainbow Brite and the Color Kids'' and '' Muppet Babies''. In 1995 the series was axed.


''The Fluffy Club''

''The Fluffy Club'' was GMTV's pre-school programming slot which aired every Monday-Friday on the CITV channel between 8:40 am and 9:25 am as part of GMTV2 and every Saturday and Sunday from 6:00 am to 7:25 am on ITV. It was produced by
Darrall Macqueen Darrall Macqueen Ltd is an independent children's television production company based in London, England. It was formed in 2000 by Billy Macqueen and Maddy Darrall. History Darrall Macqueen's first production was a converged TV/web event we ...
. It was presented by Emma Lee (who replaced original presenter Mandisa Taylor in March 2010) and puppet fluffy duckling 'Tiny Little Fluff' (who is seen in the show's logo). The slot launched in September 2008 replacing ''Wakey Wakey!'' and featured a combination of both home-grown and American imported programmes.


''Our House''

''Our House'' is a children's programme from 1997, created by
Scottish Television Scottish Television (now legally known as STV Central Limited) is the ITV (TV network), ITV network franchisee for Central Belt, Central Scotland. The channel — the largest of the three ITV franchises in Scotland — has been in operation si ...
. The series was about Grannie Banannie and her grandkids Lizzie and Jack. The series was also broadcast outwith GMTV, on Scottish and Grampian Television albeit in Gaelic, and was renamed "Granaidh Bananaidh". The music for the series was produced by The Singing Kettle's Gary Coupland. Kate Copstick, Colin Purves, Kathy Smee and Geoff Felix were among the voice artist. A VHS entitled "The Best Of Our House" was released in 1998 by Tempo.


''Riff and Raff''

A spin off of Our House about two microscopic, pea eating, bits of fluff named Riff (who is orange, tall, and slightly dim-witted) and Raff (who is purple, short, and is smart) who hide in Grannie Banannie's bag. The show mainly focuses on the two of them going outside, exploring the big world, and getting into mischief. The episodes would include clips from Our House (named The Grannie Files) and would end with Riff and Raff singing a song during the end credits (named Sing-along-a Riff and Raff). Two VHS releases entitled "The Video Shop" and "The Zoo" were produced in 1999. Coupland also produced the music and theme tune for this series.


''Oooberry Telly''

''Oooberry Telly'' was first launched in February 2002 running between the 6–7.10am timeslot. Because of the block's name, the continuity package would always lead up to '' Ni Ni's Treehouse'' being the last preschool program shown before handing over to Diggit/Up on the Roof. The "Horace & Oupagogo" shorts from said series would also be shown as separate miniseries while the viewers tuning in waited for ''Ni Ni's Treehouse'' to air. The block was discontinued in mid-2003 with all the preschool programs being branded under "GMTV Kids" which logo holds the Disney Mickey Mouse text font.


''Wakey! Wakey!''

''Wakey! Wakey!'' was GMTV's pre-school slot which ran every weekend morning on CITV, GMTV, and GMTV2 from 6:00 am to 7:25 am. It was originally presented by Kerry Newell (of '' Fun Song Factory'' fame) and was later replaced by former
CBeebies CBeebies is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content targeted for children aged six year ...
presenter
Sue Monroe Sue Monroe is a British television presenter, actress, and author best known for hosting CBeebies, and playing Poppy in ''Playdays''. Career Monroe presented, voiced and puppeteered Poppy the Cat in Playdays from 1990 to 1997. In February 2002, ...
from 2006. Before ''Wakey! Wakey!'', ''Toonattik'' ran the pre-school slot for the first half of 2005 with pre-recorded voiceovers with Jamie and Anna taking over from 07:25. In September 2008, the show was relaunched as ''The Fluffy Club''.


References


External links


GMTV

itv.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:GMTV Programmes British English-language television shows Television programming blocks British television-related lists Lists of television series by network