Good Morning Britain presenters Susanna Reid and Ed Balls delivered a breaking news announcement concerning Sir Keir Starmer's tenure as Prime Minister, extending their broadcast until 10am on Monday and replacing Lorraine Kelly's slot.
Extended Broadcast and Breaking News
Broadcasting equipment had been positioned outside Downing Street throughout Monday morning, June 22, with Susanna previously suggesting that significant developments could emerge during the live transmission. Ed stated: "Newspapers would not be reporting it, and BBC and ITV would not be saying this on camera without any correction from 10 Downing Street unless it is true."
Susanna questioned, "Is Sir Keir Starmer announcing his resignation this morning? That could happen while we are on air, he could set out a timetable for his departure, and Carol Vorderman will tell us why she thinks Andy Burnham will be the Prime Minister."
Schedule Change and Lorraine's Absence
She subsequently revealed that Good Morning Britain would extend until 10am, replacing Lorraine Kelly's programme, which typically begins at 9.30am. As Downing Street arranged the podium ahead of an eagerly awaited address, Susanna declared: "We are now in rolling news mode, we will be on air until 10am this morning because we've anticipated it all morning."
Susanna and Ed interviewed Education Minister Baroness Jacqui Smith, a frequent GMB contributor, alongside ITV's Robert Peston and Carol Vorderman.
Political Pressure and By-Election Impact
Pressure has been mounting for Sir Keir to resign, despite his vow to remain Prime Minister on Friday. In the aftermath of Andy Burnham's victory in the Makerfield by-election, reports of Sir Keir's departure began to emerge.
The scheduling change comes days after Lorraine Kelly was temporarily replaced on her ITV programme by stand-in hosts Josie Gibson and Ruth Langsford, as she was away in America for Scotland's World Cup match.
ITV Shake-Ups and Lorraine's Response
Previously, Christine Lampard and Ranvir Singh would step in to host for Lorraine when she took seasonal time off. However, ITV has undergone a series of shake-ups in recent months, with Lorraine's previous one-hour slot now cut to just half an hour, running for only 30 weeks of the year, while Good Morning Britain runs into This Morning for the rest of the year.
Lorraine previously addressed the changes, vowing: "We're still here." She continued to The Evening Standard: "Hopefully the audience will still stay with us, because that's the most important thing to me, is you know, that the audience are still enjoying what I do and the fact that people are so kind and they still watch after all these years and when I go out and about, people greet me like their friend, which is really, really lovely. And I don't think that happens to all that many people. You know that you've got that connection, primarily because I've been doing it for so long, but it's something that I never, ever take for granted, and I never take any of this for granted. I really don't, because it's, it's an honour."
Good Morning Britain airs weekdays from 6am on ITV1 and ITVX.
