ITV News Lookaround

Lookaround (branded on-screen as ITV News Lookaround) is a regional television news and current affairs programme, produced by ITV Tyne Tees & Border from its studios in Gateshead, and serving central and northern Cumbria, Dumfries and Galloway, parts of South Ayrshire, the Scottish Borders and overlap areas of Northumberland.

History

1961 – 2009

ITV Border's regional news service began on 1 September 1961 from studios at Harraby, Carlisle. Initially producing short evening bulletins and a topical magazine programme called Focus, Lookaround would become the station's flagship daily programme later on in the decade. Shorter bulletins were known as Border News. Meanwhile, the ITV Tyne Tees region had its own wholly separate news services. Lookaround is also known locally in Cumbrian dialect as "Border Crack an' Deekabout"^[2]

2009 – 2013

Proposed merger with ITV Tyne Tees

In September 2007, ITV plc announced that ITV Border news operations would be merged with ITV Tyne Tees, subject to the approval from the regulator Ofcom.^[3]

On 24 April 2008, a campaign to save the ITV Border news operation arrived in London with a petition of 9000 signed by viewers. This was ahead of MPs meeting with industry regulator Ofcom.^[4]

Ofcom authorises ITV's plans

On 26 September 2008, Ofcom authorised ITV's plans to save £40m a year by making regional programming cutbacks. These include axing mid-morning bulletins on weekdays and lunchtime bulletins at weekends, plus merging a number of regions and halving the number of non-news regional programmes.

On 30 September 2008, it was announced the number of ITV Border employees would be slashed from 64 to 13.^[5][6]

Following a survey of Isle of Man viewers in autumn 2008,^[7] coverage of the Isle of Man was transferred from ITV Border to ITV Granada in July 2009.^[8][9][10]

Lookaround begins transmitting from Gateshead

Lookaround retains an office in Carlisle where the news editor, planning and online teams are based along with correspondents, but as of February 2009, the programme is transmitted from ITV Tyne Tees' studios at The Watermark, Gateshead. The main anchors were announced as Ian Payne and Pam Royle.^[11] As part of the merger, six district reporters were appointed - working from home unless based in Carlisle or Edinburgh. The district reporters announced were Victoria Hoe in Kendal, Hannah Lomas in Carlisle, Lee Madan in Selkirk, Stuart Pollitt in Whitehaven, Olivia Richwald in Dumfries and Kathryn Samson in Edinburgh.^[11]

ITV Tyne Tees & Border was formed on 25 February 2009, with Lookaround and North East Tonight titles retained for the 6pm programme and late bulletin each weekday, whilst shorter bulletins were known simply as Tyne Tees & Border News.^[12][13]

The then remaining sub-regional elements were:

• The opening 15 minutes of the main 6pm programme.
• Full late night bulletins on weeknights, following ITV News at Ten.
• Localised weather forecasts.

On 14 January 2013, the news service was relaunched and rebranded as ITV News Lookaround.

2013 – present

Southern Scotland coverage reviewed

On 23 May 2012, ITV announced proposals for further changes on its regional news programming, with "some content replaced with aggregate of news from several regions" and an expansion in sub-regional coverage.^[14] In November, upon the renewal of ITV's licences for a further ten years, Culture Secretary Maria Millar asked Ofcom to look into proposals for the Border region which would leave Southern Scotland viewers without "the same level of Scottish programming as viewers elsewhere in the country", covered by STV.^[15]

In a consultation document, Ofcom set out two potential options, with any changes coming into effect in 2015 at the latest.^[16][17] ITV proposed re-introducing a full news service exclusively for the Border region, including the return of half-hour editions of Lookaround and short news bulletins, as well as introducing a weekly current affairs programme for the region. The second option was to enforce ITV Border to broadcast 90 minutes a week of non-news programming, including programming from STV.

Press reports indicated a political split in opinion on the issue. In April, the Borders Chamber and members of the local authority at Newton^[18] and the Scottish Borders Chamber of Commerce^[19] publicly supported the second option - with the Chamber calling for a national ITV service for the whole of Scotland.

Two members of the UK Government - Scottish Secretary of State Michael Moore and deputy David Mundell (both MPs in the Border region) - backed ITV's proposal for a Border current affairs programme while the Scottish Government called for STV programming (including Scotland Tonight) to be simulcast.^[20]

On 16 May 2013, the first televised Scottish independence debate was broadcast on STV's Scotland Tonight across northern and central Scotland, however viewers in the south of the country were unable to see it as ITV Border took the decision not to broadcast it, leading to further criticism from politicians in the region.^[21] Michael Jermey, ITV Director of News and Current Affairs, pledged some programming from STV would air on ITV Border.^[22]

On 23 July 2013, OFCOM announced it had approved the second option of Scottish non-news programming. The regulator also ordered ITV to reopen the former Border Scotland service previously utilized for split news bulletins and simulcasts of select STV programming. The opt-out service was launched on Freeview in January 2014 and consists of a thrice-weekly political programme, Representing Border, and a weekly feature series, Border Life.^[23] The bespoke local programming is not seen in Cumbria, where network programming continues to air.

Lookaround fully restored

On 14 June 2013, it was reported Lookaround would be restored to a full 30-minute programme along with ITV recruiting journalists for an Autumn launch.^[24]

A month later, Ofcom approved ITV's plans to restore Border's news service. All short bulletins - including daytime and weekend updates - are now exclusive to the Border region, however with the minutage decreased.^[25] The changes came into effect on 16 September 2013.^[26]

ITV Tyne Tees & Border continues to broadcast from the Gateshead studios - as such, both regional services utilise exactly the same presenter(s) and studio/set, therefore one of the two programmes - depending on the day's news - is pre-recorded 'as live' shortly before broadcast.^[27] The head of ITV Border's news and regional programmes is Michaela Byrne, based in Gateshead, with Catherine Houlihan as managing editor, based at Border's Carlisle offices.

Broadcast times

Lookaround airs on ITV Border each weeknight at 6pm.

On weekdays, a four-minute lunchtime bulletin airs at 1.55pm, followed by the main half-hour programme at 6pm and an eight-minute late bulletin at 10.30pm following ITV News at Ten. At weekends, two 5- or 10-minute editions of ITV News Border are broadcast – one later on Saturday afternoons and another on Sunday evenings. At weekends, two 5-minute editions of ITV News Border are broadcast - one later on Saturday afternoons and another on Sunday evenings.

On weekday mornings, Good Morning Border airs short bulletins within Good Morning Britain at approximately 6.05am, 7.05am and 8.05am.

On air team

Past presenters/presenters

Listing former presenters/reporters for Lookaround and their subsequent employers.

References

External links

• Lookaround at itv.com
• ITV News at itv.com