ITV flagship show taken off air for most of week in sudden shake-up

ITV won’t be airing one of its daytime shows for four days this week to accommodate Cheltenham Festival, though a host of its other shows are unaffected by the event

Loose Women is being replaced in the TV schedule later this week, with it taking a temporary break for a few days.

The ITV panel show airs weekdays around midday but it’s been replaced in the channel’s schedule for four days this week. The show won’t air between Tuesday and Friday due to the broadcaster’s coverage of Cheltenham Festival.

The ITV Lunchtime News typically follows Loose Women at 1.30pm but has been brought forward an hour, falling into the former’s usual slot. It’s to accommodate the horse racing event, which is due to air from 1pm to 4.30pm for much of this week, which covers the other half of Loose Women’s usual slot.

And although fans may be disappointed by the news, Loose Women won’t be off air for long. The show is scheduled to return next Monday (March 18) once Cheltenham Festival, which runs from March 12 to 15 this year, has concluded.

Loose Women, which includes panelists such as Linda Robson (left), Jane Moore (centre left), Nadia Sawalha (centre right) and Kelly Holmes (right), will be taking a break later this week ( 
Image:
Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

ITV hasn’t altered its morning line-up of shows though. Good Morning Britain, which airs from 6am to 9am, will be broadcast as usual this week. It will be followed by Lorraine from 9am to 10am each day. Similarly, This Morning, which usually airs from 10am to 12.30pm in the slot immediately before Loose Women, isn’t affected either and will air as usual.

It’s the latest instance of Loose Women being replaced in the schedule, with coverage of the chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s Spring Budget having taken its slot on Wednesday afternoon just last week. This Morning was also affected, with that show having ended earlier than usual that morning.

Ahead of its absence later this week, Monday’s episode of Loose Women promises to be a “very glamorous show”. It comes following the Academy Awards – which is typically known as the Oscars – having taken place on the weekend. The awards ceremony was held in Los Angeles on Sunday.

Ruth Langsford, Coleen Nolan, Denise Welch and Katie Piper will be on the panel of the ITV show later to discuss the winners in a special episode. The panellists will be joined by actor Nigel Havers, whose career has included starring in the acclaimed Oscar-winning film Chariots of Fire (1981).

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Loose Women’s account on X, formerly known as Twitter, teased in a post on the platform: “We’re starting the week with an Oscars special! Ruth, Coleen, Denise and Katie will be joined by Nigel Havers for a very glamorous show that you really won’t want to miss. Tune in at 12.30 on ITV1.”

Loose Women typically airs weekdays at 12.30pm on ITV and ITVX. Previous episodes are available through the streaming platform.