ITV seeks to avoid X Factor and Strictly clashes by publishing episode times
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Version 0 of 1. ITV has published the start times of all the episodes of hit series X Factor this autumn in a bid to avoid clashing with BBC1’s Strictly Come Dancing. The perennial issue of the two entertainment shows competing with each other on Saturday nights is frustrating for audiences, according to ITV director of television, Peter Fincham. Speaking at The Guardian Edinburgh International Television Festival, Fincham said he has decided to put the broadcasters’ cards on the table. “We’re actually going to do something we’ve never done before. We’re going to tell the world the start times of all X Factor broadcasts this autumn,” he said. “Our audience tell us they don’t want those two shows to overlap.” Fincham continued: “What happens with billings is we have a number of exchanges [of draft schedules]. So on Saturday week there’s a Strictly Come Dancing launch show and a third X Factor audition show. We had a first exchange which had the X Factor show starting exactly when the Strictly show ended. “That revealed to each broadcaster what we were doing. In the second exchange, they moved Strictly 20 minutes later. I don’t know why they did that, no reason for doing that but that feels to me like an avoidable clash. It feels to me a bit like ‘let’s clip the X Factor’s wings’.” “This really matters to us, because we’re a commercial business, this is business to us. I know from my own time at the BBC; it’s a bit of a game to be honest,” he said. “What we’re going to do is literally publish the X Factor start times [for] this autumn … because all the evidence we have is that our audiences don’t want the two to overlap. “Our audience then know when the X Factor will start, whether or not the BBC responds to that is another matter,” said Fincham pointedly. However, BBC director of television, Danny Cohen, said: “We notice this happens all the time; Emmerdale will find itself in a double bill against EastEnders with astonishing regularity. “I’m sure there’s no reason for that. There’s to-ing and fro-ing. We don’t look for it.” Asked by host, Sky News presenter Kay Burley, if he would guarantee that Strictly and X Factor would not clash, Cohen said: “No, some of our start times are affected around when live sport happens.” Burley asked: “When there’s no live sport, will you guarantee it?” Cohen responded: “No. In the same way Peter won’t guarantee he won’t have an Emmerdale double bill up against EastEnders … these clashes happen sometimes.” That was reiterated later by BBC1 controller, Charlotte Moore, in a different session, who said she would schedule Strictly where BBC1 viewers wanted to see it and accused ITV of scheduling its own biggest shows against BBC1. She said if Fincham wanted to move X Factor later, that would be “fantastic”. “I have to think about what’s right for our audience,” she said. “The licence fee payers, these are the shows they love, of course that’s my priority. Emmerdale quite often goes against EastEnders, soap against soap, I would say that’s not great for the audience. We do our very best to avoid clashes.” |