Kate Garraway has assumed a new role on Good Morning Britain following significant budget cuts at ITV. The presenter, 58, who serves as the programme's main news anchor, has also begun hosting the London news updates. A clip shared on social media showed Garraway returning to the main desk immediately after presenting the capital's bulletin.
The cuts, described by insiders as a 'bloodbath', were announced last year and have led to sweeping changes across ITV's daytime lineup. More than 200 jobs are expected to be lost from the 440-strong workforce across shows like Lorraine and Loose Women. Lorraine has been reduced from one hour to 30 minutes and will now air only 30 weeks a year, while Loose Women will also be cut back to 30 weeks annually.
Good Morning Britain, however, has been extended by 30 minutes, now running from 6am to 9:30am. The move comes as ITV restructures its daytime schedule, with This Morning remaining unchanged in length and frequency. Viewers expressed mixed reactions to the changes, with some questioning the point of a shorter Lorraine programme.
On the first day of the new schedule, Good Morning Britain began with a heated exchange between presenter Susanna Reid and Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch. Reid pressed Badenoch on whether she would keep the two-child benefit cap and reduce employers' national insurance, leading to a tense back-and-forth over the party's alternative policies.
