Vanessa Feltz's daytime chat show 'Vanessa' has been cancelled by Channel 5 after just 18 months on air. The presenter was reportedly left furious and blindsided by the decision, which was communicated to her in a meeting after the show came off air this week.
A Channel 5 spokesperson confirmed the cancellation, stating: 'Due to afternoon scheduling changes, ‘Vanessa’ will be rested from July 17th. We thank Vanessa and her team at ITN for 18 months of warm, witty, wise and searingly honest shows. Vanessa remains a valued member of the 5 family and we are discussing future projects together.'
The show, which aired weekdays at 2pm, had struggled with low ratings, attracting an average of just 50,000 viewers per episode. In comparison, ITV's 'Loose Women' draws between 800,000 and 1.2 million viewers in a similar slot. The programme was also plagued by prank callers, some of whom pretended to be EastEnders characters.
A source told the Mail that Feltz had 'given her all' to the show and was 'truly devastated' by the news, especially as she had left a 'very good role on This Morning' to join Channel 5. The source added that producers 'tried their best to crack down' on the pranks, but it couldn't be done.
Despite three revamps to the set and logo in an attempt to boost viewership, audience numbers remained low. Another source said Feltz was 'just not viable to keep on air' amid declining terrestrial television audiences. The Mirror has reached out to Feltz's representatives for comment.
