UTV Live

UTV Live

UTV Live opening sequence
Also known as UTV Live Tonight
Format Regional/National News
Country of origin Northern Ireland, UK
Language(s) English
Production
Executive producer(s) Julie O'Connor
Editor(s) Chris Hagan
Location(s) Belfast, Northern Ireland
Camera setup Multi-camera
Running time 30 minutes
(6pm/10.30pm shows)
Production company(s) UTV
Broadcast
Original channel UTV
Picture format 576i (SDTV 16:9)
Original run January 4, 1993 (1993-01-04) – present
Chronology
Preceded by Roundabout
UTV Reports
Good Evening Ulster
Six Tonight
Related shows BBC Newsline
External links
Website

UTV Live is the name of the regional news service broadcast on UTV, the ITV region in Northern Ireland. The first edition of the programme was transmitted on Monday 4 January 1993.

Contents

On Air

UTV Live airs seven days a week:

Weekday bulletins

UTV Live bulletins are not transmitted during Daybreak (ITV Breakfast); the Daybreak Northern Ireland news service is provided by Macmillan Media.[1]

Weekend bulletins

Two bulletins of 10 minutes length are broadcast during the weekend: one on Saturdays, in the late afternoon, and one on Sundays, in the early evening.

Programme format

The main evening edition of UTV Live airs from 18.00 to 18.30 every weeknight, covering the day's news, current affairs and sport from across Northern Ireland, with UTV Live Tonight airing from 22.30 to 23.00 on Monday to Thursday nights.

The 18:00 and 22:30 programmes are broadcast from Studio One at UTV's headquarters in Havelock House, Belfast[2] with short bulletins broadcast from the continuity studio in the station's Central Technical Area. UTV also has studio facilities at Parliament Buildings, Stormont[3] and news bureaux in Derry[3] and Dublin[3] with an intention to open a further bureau in Omagh.[4] The station also makes use of video journalists based in Coleraine, Enniskillen and Newry.[5]

Programme history

UTV Live was introduced in January 1993 as a new name for Ulster Television's existing news programmes; Six Tonight, the station's half-hour evening news magazine,[6] and Ulster Newstime for shorter bulletins.[7]

From 1993 until March 1999, the weekday evening programme ran for one hour at 18.00, and was usually referred to as UTV Live at Six,[8][9] with other bulletins receiving subtitles such as Morning News.[10] and Early Evening News[11]

Following the introduction of the ITV Evening News (now known as ITV News at 6:30) on Monday 8 March 1999, the programme was brought forward by half an hour to start at 17.30. The first half-hour saw feature reports, light-hearted stories and the weather forecast branded as part of a separate programme, UTV Life, which ran before the evening news bulletin, which started at 18:00 and kept the UTV Live name.[12] UTV Live and UTV Life were merged into one hour-long programme, running from 17:30, in 2002 and were split into separate programmes again on 3 September 2007, with the original titles in use from 1999 to 2001.

For one week in February 2004, UTV moved the first half-hour part of UTV Live in the schedules from 17:30 to 13:00, to accommodate the networked 24 Hour Quiz.[13][14] Although UTV claimed the change in slot for the features section of UTV Live would run until April 2004,[14] viewer complaints saw UTV Live returned to the 17:30 slot one week later.[15]

Mid-morning weekday and lunchtime weekend UTV Live bulletins were axed in February 2009 when the station was permitted to reduce their weekly news bulletin output from five hours, twenty minutes to four hours.[16] A separate sports bulletin, Sport on Sunday, was broadcast following the Sunday evening bulletin from September 1999 to early 2007. This bulletin was separate from the Sunday evening news as it was sponsored by the Daily Mirror.

Between February 2007 and April 2009, only the main weekday evening programme was branded as UTV Live, while all other bulletins were branded as UTV News.[17]

UTV Life

UTV Life, a separate live magazine programme concentrating on features and light-hearted stories, was broadcast at 17:30 on weekdays. This programme had its own editor[15] and presenting/reporting team.

UTV Life originally began on 8 March 1999[12] as a stand-alone programme with features reports, light-hearted stories and an extended weather forecast. The programme ran from 17:30, proceeding UTV Live at Six until the two programmes were integrated into an hour-long UTV Live programme on April 2002.

The UTV Life branding for the features section of UTV Live returned to on-air use on Monday 3 September 2007.[18] The features element of the programme again became a separate programme in order to accommodate a programme sponsorship deal. The relaunch of UTV Life saw the programme gain a different theme tune, opening title sequence and graphic design, with a similar presenting, reporting and editorial team as the former features segment of UTV Live.[18]

As part of cost-cutting measures and a reduction in regional programming at the station, UTV Life was axed shortly after the broadcasting regulator OFCOM gave UTV the go ahead to reduce its non-news output, with the final programme airing on 6 February 2009.[19][20] A weekly replacement for UTV Life, The Seven Thirty Show, was introduced in June 2009.[21]

On Monday 27 April 2009, UTV launched a 30-minute late evening news & current affairs programme, UTV Live Tonight, which airs at 10:30pm on Monday - Thursday nights and incorporates the station's late news bulletin alongside extended political and business coverage. A shorter late night bulletin airs each Friday at 10:30pm and during the programme's summer break.

The team

18.00 bulletin anchors

UTV Live Tonight anchors

Newsreaders: Gillian Porter (Monday-Wednesday); Pamela Ballantine, Sarah Clarke, Aideen Kennedy, Rose Neill (Thursday/relief)

Other bulletin presenters

  • Judith Hill
  • Sara Moore
  • Trudy Smith

Hill, Kennedy, McAlinden, Moore and Smith are also UTV Live reporters.

Ballantine, Browne, Neill and Porter are continuity announcers at the station; UTV's other continuity announcer, Julian Simmons, generally does not read news bulletins.[23]

Reporters

  • Paul Cromie
  • Niall Donnelly[25]
  • Ivan Little (freelance)[25]
  • Jane Loughrey[25]
  • Tracey Magee[25]
  • Shauna McKeown
  • Naomi McMullan
  • Sharon O'Neill
  • Victoria Steveley
  • Gareth Wilkinson

UTV Sport

  • Presenters/Reporters: Claire Glancy, Ruth Gorman, Colm McAlinden
  • Relief reporters: Chris Brennan, John Flack, David McGeagh

UTV Weather

Only the weekday 18.25 and late weather bulletins are presented in-vision.

Former presenters and reporters

In October 2008, UTV announced its intention to cut 13 jobs in the news department due to corporate restructuring.[32] The station declared it was offering staff a voluntary redundancy package.[33] Staff who were reported to have accepted the redundancy package were:

References

  1. ^ Macmillan Media website
  2. ^ £250,000 update at UTV studios Belfast Telegraph, 3 July 2006; accessed 18 January 2009
  3. ^ a b c UTV Annual Programme Statement 2008 and Programme Review 2007
  4. ^ UTV Annual Programme Statement 2009 and Programme Review 2008 UTV Media
  5. ^ UTV Annual Programme Statement 2006 and Programme Review 2005 UTV Media
  6. ^ UTV Six Tonight opening titles YouTube; accessed 22 June 2008
  7. ^ Ulster Newstime opening titles YouTube; accessed 22 June 2008
  8. ^ UTV Live opening titles - early 1993 YouTube; accessed 22 June 2008
  9. ^ UTV Live opening titles - June 1993 YouTube; accessed 22 June 2008
  10. ^ UTV Live intro 1997 YouTube; accessed 22 June 2008
  11. ^ UTV Live News and Promos 1995 YouTube; accessed 22 June 2008
  12. ^ a b "UTV unveils shake-up for news" Belfast Telegraph, 26 February 1999
  13. ^ "Frank and Co shunted off prime slot" Belfast Telegraph, 1 February 2004; accessed 22 June 2008
  14. ^ a b LIVE AT 5.30 MOVES TO LUNCHTIME.doc "UTV Live at 5.30 moves to lunchtime" UTV Press Office, 10 February 2004, accessed 22 June 2008
  15. ^ a b "Fan power wins back live show" Belfast Telegraph, 22 February 2004; accessed 17 June 2007
  16. ^ "UTV Life may face axe" Belfast Telegraph, 8 October 2008; accessed 18 January 2009
  17. ^ UTV Live Rebrand: Timeline of Events UTV Today
  18. ^ a b UTV Life: Info UTV Today, accessed 18 January 2009
  19. ^ "UTV stars fear for jobs as bosses swing axe" Belfast Telegraph, 17 October 2008; accessed 18 October 2008
  20. ^ "A poignant finale for popular UTV show" News Letter, 7 February 2009; accessed 7 February 2009
  21. ^ "Timely launch for new UTV series" UTV Press Office, 27 May 2009, accessed 20 September 2009
  22. ^ People - UTV Live UTV Today
  23. ^ a b c d e People - UTV News Presenters UTV Today
  24. ^ "I belong at UTV", Sunday Life; published 7 June 2009, retrieved 19 January 2011
  25. ^ a b c d e f g People - Reporters and Correspondents UTV Today
  26. ^ UTV Today: Weather - In-Vision Forecasts with Frank Mitchell UTV Today
  27. ^ TV Live: UTV - 2009 to date
  28. ^ "Lynda Bryans makes dignified farewell to UTV", Belfast Telegraph, 1 July 2010; accessed 23 July 2010
  29. ^ Northern Ireland Assembly: Members; accessed 13 May 2011
  30. ^ "Northern Ireland Screen gets new board members"; Northern Ireland Executive, 21 December 2007, retrieved 10 January 2008
  31. ^ "New editor for the News Letter" News Letter, 27 July 2006, accessed 16 June 2008
  32. ^ "Stars under threat as UTV cuts jobs" News Letter, 15 October 2008; accessed 27 February 2009
  33. ^ "UTV stars fear for jobs as bosses swing axe" Belfast Telegraph, 17 October 2008; accessed 27 February 2009
  34. ^ "Ivan itch for change" Sunday Life, 18 January 2009; accessed 27 February 2009
  35. ^ "Claire calls time out" Sunday Life, 22 February 2009; accessed 27 February 2009
  36. ^ "Another news veteran to leave UTV screens" News Letter, 24 January 2009; accessed 27 February 2009
  37. ^ "Two popular faces leaving UTV news" News Letter, 20 January 2009, accessed 27 February 2009
  38. ^ "Angry Logie quits UTV" Belfast Telegraph, 24 April 2009, accessed 24 April 2009

External links