2024 Predictions

[Jonny Hotsausage]

On the BBC...
- BBC Three and Four both axed, programmes generally move to BBC Two
- CBBC's roadmap to closure is laid out, but a CBBC HQ block on BBC Two is retained in the short term.
- BBC Scotland axed, programmes transfer to BBC Two Scotland.
- Labour, who sadly will win the election, will jack up the License Fee to £174pa
- More programmes are released to BBC iPlayer ahead of linear TX. Dolby 5.1 support finally arrives, but initially only on titles which are in UHD.

Elsewhere...

- STV finally sell to ITV, ITV 1 is branded with the country name in the nations with separate continuity.
- Schofield enters the Jungle, rehabilitating his image
- Nigel Farage leaves GB News to return to frontline politics
- Talk TV is axed. Radio continues.

At the Election...

- Fiona Bruce and Laura Kunessberg front the Election on the BBC
- Clive Myrie also takes on a significant role, possibly as a debate moderator
- on the subject of debates, GB News conducts one. Some parties send more minor figures, but they are forced to empty chair one or more parties when they decline their invitations entirely.

At Eurovision...

- Israeli broadcaster KAN is forced to withdraw from the Eurovision Song Contest, citing artist/delegate security concerns in Malmö.
- Olly Alexander defies all expectations and wins, with the BBC coronating 2023 runner up Glasgow to host.
- Meanwhile, following a "will they won't they" game with the media ABBA merely sit in the audience on final night, but the ABBAtars perform the halftime show.
- Petra Mede doesn't get picked as host, with Melodifestivalen host Farah Abadi (last year's spokeswoman & already this year's allocation draw host) taking the lead.
- Rylan and Scott Mills are announced as Ken Bruce's permanent replacement on Radio 2 for the final, but continue on television midweek.
- Marty Whelan announces his retirement on air following another Irish NQ. Patrick Kielty takes over.

In Radio...

- Bauer Media finally roll out the Hits Radio brand but in England only
- The Media Bill sees the final independent commercial radio licenses hoovered up with only news splits now being necessary. Global acquire Mansfield 103.2 and Fosse 107 to return Heart to parts of the East Midlands on FM. Bauer acquire KMFM in Kent, flips to GHR.
- Copying Lincolnshire and the E Mids, Bauer flip Pirate onto DAB with FM carrying GHR.
- Nation Broadcasting is sold to a new operator, who operate a more Communicorp style model whereby all licenses franchise a Bauer brand.

[HerrLipp]

• BBC does a U-turn and announces it will close Three but keep Four. The CBBC channel still closes

• Channel 4 begins to experiment with European-style continuity (so fewer/no 30-second idents with a VO - more short stings instead

• Eamonn Holmes will leave GB News; meanwhile Patrick Christys will be sacked after saying something even more outrageous than anything Laurence Fox did. The channel continues to limp on throughout 2024

• ITV News will finally introduce a new look in the autumn, with separate branding for News at Ten

• The new-style Newsnight (aka Politics Live in the Evening) is a flop; Newsnight is axed by summer 2025

• Sky News also introduces a new set in the newsroom, consigning the glass box to TV Ark history

• UTV at last becomes ITV1 Northern Ireland; the UTV name stays for local programmes and news

[Nobby]

• New version of Blockbusters announced for Channel 5 daytime. Presented by Dan Walker or Andrew Castle.

• The One Show is extended to 1 hour.

• The Repair Shop gets a spin off based on repairing relationships. It is BBC Religion and Ethics commission.

• An election is called and a prominent politician uses the word 'berk' while being interviewed by Sophie Ridge or similar on day one of campaigning and later apologises.

• Wincy Willis' television comeback.

• Challenge to be renamed to Challenge TV.

• Challenge TV starts to show some ITV sitcoms including Bless this House and Father Dear Father.

• Prayer Time Live extends it's hours, broadcasting until 15:00 each weekday and buying time on a more prominent channel.

• Richard Osman reduces his role on Richard Osman's House of Games with some weeks now being presented by lady comedian Maisie Adam. Some physical games introduced and a gunging on Fridays.

• Big Michael Aspel announcement.

• BBC to subtitle all continuity announcements and ECPs on BBC One.

• A new character is added to the Sooty IP. A posh lion who wears a top hat. Probably called "Apple" and probably androgynous.

• Deal or No Deal gets a second series but several episodes are broadcast in a heavily and badly edited form after it is discovered that one of the contestants waiting in the wings can't be shown on TV for some reason. Their episode is not shown at all. They don't receive the £9000 they won. ITV make very few public statements about it.

• BBC One broadcast a series of Not Going Out set entirely in Canada.

• Disney's Steamboat Willie to be shown on several UK channels throughout the year, some channels choosing to remove a scene involving a pig with teats.

• Talking Pictures TV introduces in-vision continuity before all programmes. It will consist of some teleshopping/product placement elements.

• Talk TV introduce subtitles on Freeview.

• BBC iPlayer rebrands as BBCi.