Award-winning Victoria Derbyshire Show to be axed amid BBC budget cuts
The BBC's Victoria Derbyshire Show is being taken off air as the broadcaster “cuts costs”.
The news was reported by the BBC's media editor, Amol Rajan, who shared that running the award-winning programme on a linear channel was too costly when "savings are needed".
He tweeted: "The Victoria Derbyshire Show is coming off air. I understand @BBCNews is committed to Victoria + the (award-winning) journalism of the show. Cost of doing it on linear channel when savings are needed deemed too high. BBC declined to comment ahead of an announcement next week.
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"The show won awards at the RTS and from BAFTA. Victoria nominated for Best Presenter 4 years in a row - and won once. Digital impact was huge. Show was designed to reach audiences the BBC struggles to connect with, and it did - online."
1/ The Victoria Derbyshire Show is coming off air. I understand @BBCNews is committed to Victoria + the (award-winning) journalism of the show. Cost of doing it on linear channel when savings are needed deemed too high. BBC declined to comment ahead of an announcement next week
— Amol Rajan (@amolrajan) January 22, 2020
The programme, which began airing in 2015, was awarded a BAFTA in 2017 for its coverage on ex footballers who had faced sexual abuse.
The announcement faced criticism from other members of the media, with Good Morning Britain's Piers Morgan dubbing it a "very strange decision".
Very strange decision. It was an excellent programme & @vicderbyshire is a superb journalist. Surely the BBC isn’t now finding the cash to pay for its gender pay fiasco by cancelling other women’s shows? https://t.co/SSqEDs8Ywe
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) January 22, 2020
Louisa Compton, the show's former editor, opined: “An organisation that values original journalism and underserved audiences should not be doing this. It’s madness."
Meanwhile, shadow culture secretary Tracy Brabin posted: "I’ll be looking into why @VictoriaLIVE is being taken off air. Rigorous campaigning & commitment to public having their say made it pretty unique in daytime TV.
"Victoria herself was sharp & approachable with a personal journey that made her relatable."
Journalist Emma Ailes, who works on the programme, said it was “devastating news”.
She posted on Twitter: “Sitting here putting together tomorrow’s @VictoriaLIVE. 3 other journalists on the team here with me, all young, female and so talented. And busting a gut to make it as brilliant a programme as ever despite devastating news today.
“I’ve never worked on a team that cared so much.”
The BBC declined to comment.
With additional reporting by PA.
