ITV's flagship daytime show, This Morning, was pulled off the air early on Wednesday, 26th November 2025, making way for the government's pivotal Autumn Budget announcement.
Unexpected Early Finish for Daytime Favourite
Presenters Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley broke the news to viewers just minutes into the programme, revealing the show would conclude at 12:10pm, a full 20 minutes earlier than its usual slot. While the programme was not cancelled outright, the scheduling change was a direct result of the budget coverage.
Addressing the audience, Cat Deeley welcomed viewers to "Wednesday's This Morning," before Ben Shephard chimed in with the reason for the truncated broadcast. "We are here with you until 12:10pm because everyone is excited about the budget," Shephard explained. "They are booting us off early but the guys at ITV1 and ITV News will be bringing you all the details as it happens."
Loose Women Also Affected by Budget Coverage
This was not an isolated incident in ITV's daytime lineup. The schedule disruption was pre-empted the day before when Ruth Langsford announced on Loose Women that the popular panel show would not be airing at all on Wednesday, 26th November. Langsford confirmed to the studio audience and viewers at home, "We are not on tomorrow because of the budget," assuring them the show would return on Thursday, 27th November at its regular time.
Major ITV Daytime Shake-Up from 2026
This temporary disruption comes amidst a backdrop of more permanent and significant changes planned for ITV's daytime schedule, set to take effect from January 2026.
The key changes announced include:
- Lorraine will be reduced to a 30-minute show, airing from 9:30 am to 10 am and will run seasonally for 30 weeks per year.
- Good Morning Britain will see its broadcast time extended, regularly running for three and a half hours and stretching to a full four hours when Lorraine is off-air.
- Loose Women will revert to a 30-week annual pattern, mirroring its pre-2016 schedule structure.
Kevin Lygo, ITV's Managing Director of Media and Entertainment, commented on the strategic shift. "Daytime is a really important part of what we do, and these scheduling and production changes will enable us to continue to deliver a schedule providing viewers with the news, debate and discussion they love," he stated. Lygo also acknowledged that the plans would generate savings for reinvestment and lead to an impact on off-screen staff within the Daytime production teams.
While viewers experienced a shorter show on Wednesday, these announced changes signal a substantial and lasting transformation for ITV's daytime television landscape in the coming year.
