Britain's Got Talent has escaped an ITV cull after the channel has cancelled a number of Saturday night primetime TV shows to make way for sport coverage.
There was outrage amongst viewers of ITV in March when Ant and Dec confirmed on air that Saturday Night Takeaway had been cancelled in order for the broadcaster to air live rugby action as England took on France in the Six Nations. The match coverage dominated the Saturday night schedule for over three hours, meaning that talent show Starstruck was also also axed for a week.
And the uproar didn't stop there as, just days later, it was announced that the Dancing on Ice final,. a big ratings winner year after year for ITV, had been pushed back a week as the channel decided to prioritise FA Cup football. Viewers argued that both the rugby and football matches should have gone onto ITV3 or ITV4 and there is sure to be equal displeasure this coming weekend as programming is changed for more sport.
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On Saturday. May 14, as well as it being the Eurovision Song Contest, Liverpool will take on Chelsea in the FA Cup final, after their Premier League title fight suffered a blow with a 1-1 draw against Spurs at the weekend. Coverage of the annual event will kick off on ITV at 3.45pm and run close to four hours, right through to 7.30pm, meaning Stephen Mulhern's In For A Penny and dating show Romeo & Duet, hosted by Ori Mabuse, has both been scrapped.
And ITV are actually dedicating a whole afternoon to sport as, prior to the FA Cup, they will air horse racing from Newbury at 1.15pm.
The FA cup coverage will be followed by two delayed news bulletins, before Britain's Got Talent escapes the axe and runs in its usual 8pm slot. The FA Cup final is also dominating proceedings on the BBC on late afternoon, with coverage there starting at 4pm and running until 7.15pm.
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