Live at Five

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Live at Five (or Live at 5) is a name used by several television stations in some countries to refer to their 5:00pm newscasts or talk shows.

• The name was coined by WNBC-TV in New York City in 1980 for a lifestyle and celebrity news show. See Live at Five (WNBC TV series).

Other American television stations picked up the name through the 1980s, to varying degrees of success. For example, in Philadelphia, WCAU-TV's "Live at 5" -- that market's first 5 p.m. newscast -- was so successful that the station rechristened its late news "Live at 11" using the 5 p.m. anchor team; the success was short-lived, though, once market-leader WPVI expanded its Action News broadcasts to the 5 p.m. hour.

• With the possible exception of WNBC, one of the most popular instances of the Live at Five format was shown on the CTV network in Atlantic Canada. Its version of Live at 5 premiered in 1982, after network executives became aware of WNBC's experiment and decided to copy it. The program continues to this day, staying true to the original format. CTV often boasts of a 51% ratings share for Live at 5 in a market of approximately 1.5 million. See Live at 5 (CTV).

• In the United Kingdom, the name has been used since 1989 by Sky News. See Live at Five (Sky).