A legendary nostalgic broadcaster will be ‘shutting down five music channels in the UK’ amid the quick rise of streaming services
Legendary nostalgic broadcaster ‘shutting down five channels in the UK’(Image: GETTY)
Nostalgic broadcaster MTV will reportedly be closing all of its iconic music channels around the globe, minus the USA, following huge cuts amid a company merger. In the UK, MTV Music, MTV 80s, MTV 90s, Club MTV and Live HD will no longer be available to watch after decades on air.
MTV has reportedly finalised a deal between Paramount Global and Skydance Media. Over the summer, it was revealed MTV UK, which started in the 90s and helped launch the careers of Emma Willis and Kelly Brook, became the latest casualty of social media and streaming.
At the time, bosses said it “will still have a presence” but accepted MTV UK wouldn’t continue making original music content.
And now, it was reported in The Sun that the music channels will be pulled from air on December 31. The main MTV channel will not be affected.
One insider said it was a ‘dark day for the music industry’ as they told the publication: “MTV was once an industry powerhouse but now is a total shell of its former self. All channels bar the main MTV station are being axed — but even that only airs reality TV shows like Geordie Shore.”
The source claimed the changes were due to the rise of streaming.
Earlier this summer, a spokesman said: “MTV UK is sunsetting local series Gonzo and Fresh Out UK, beginning this month. We are deeply grateful to our hosts, Jack Saunders and Becca Dudley, the talented artists who have been a part of these series, as well as the teams who brought them to life.
“Fans can continue to enjoy global music shows like the MTV VMAs, STANS and Ozzy Osbourne: No Escape From Now on MTV and Paramount+, alongside digital music content on our MTV UK social channels.”
Earlier this year, Sky performed a shake up its channel offerings as POP Max was removed from all platforms.
The broadcaster previously carried POP Max and POP Max +1 on Sky Q and Sky+HD, as well as POP Max HD on Sky Glass and Sky Stream.
The channel had already vanished from Freeview last year. Originally launched in 2008 as Kix, the channel underwent a rebranding to POP in 2017.
Sky broke the news on its website, noting that while other POP-branded channels will stay, some will change positions due to the closures.
Veteran broadcaster John Stapleton has died at the age of 79 after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, his agent has said.
The presenter, who featured widely on programmes including the BBC’s Watchdog and GMTV’s News Hour and began his career at the Oldham Chronicle, died in hospital on Sunday morning.
His Parkinson’s disease was complicated by pneumonia, his agent said.
Jackie Gill said “his son Nick and daughter-in-law Lisa have been constantly at his side and John died peacefully in hospital”.
Stapleton revealed his diagnosis in October 2024.
Appearing on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, he said: “There’s no point in being miserable. It won’t ever change.
“I mean, Parkinson’s is here with me now for the rest of my life. Best I can do is try and control it and take the advice of all the experts.”
Yet the phrase “conflict of interest” has come up quite a bit on social media — go ahead, search it on X (formerly Twitter) — regarding the optics of an NFL broadcaster hanging out with Raiders coaches and apparently communicating with others in the organization through a headset,
The NFL said Tuesday, however, that Brady doesn’t appear to have done anything wrong.
“There are no policies that prohibit an owner from sitting in the coaches’ booth or wearing a headset during a game. Brady was sitting in the booth in his capacity as a limited partner,” NFL chief spokesperson Brian McCarthy said in a statement emailed to The Times. “All personnel sitting in the booth must abide by policies that prohibit the use of electronic devices other than league-issued equipment such as a Microsoft Surface Tablet for the Sideline Viewing System.”
Also during the Raiders’ 20-9 loss to the Chargers, ESPN’s Peter Schrager reported that Raiders offensive coordinator Chip Kelly told him that Brady speaks with Kelly multiple times a week to discuss game plans and break down film. Asked about the report after the game, Raiders coach Pete Carroll said it is “not accurate.”
“We have conversations — I talk to Tom, Chip talks to Tom — regularly,” Carroll said. “We have a tremendous asset and we all get along well and we respect each other. And so we just talk about life and football and whatever. … He has great insight and so we’re lucky to have him as an owner.”
During the 2024 season, Brady’s first as both a broadcaster and a team owner, he was not allowed to attend the weekly production meetings during which the Fox crew meets with coaches and players ahead of that week’s game. That restriction was lifted going into this season.
While McCarthy did not specifically answer a question from The Times about Kelly’s reported comment about his talks with Brady, it would appear that the NFL is confident that the restrictions it has in place would prevent Brady from acquiring any information any non-owner wouldn’t be able to gather.
“Tom continues to be prohibited from going to a team facility for practices or production meetings,” McCarthy said in his statement. “He may attend production meetings remotely but may not attend in person at the team facility or hotel. He may also conduct an interview off site with a player like he did last year a couple times, including for the Super Bowl. Of course, as with any production meeting with broadcast teams, it’s up to the club, coach or players to determine what they say in those sessions.”
The restrictions were placed on the legendary quarterback last August when his purchase of a 10% stake in the Las Vegas Raiders was pending approval from the league owners. Brady’s minority stake was approved in October.
One of the so-called Brady Rules enacted by the NFL prohibited the rookie broadcaster from attending production meetings during which the Fox crew meets with coaches and players ahead of that week’s game.
That retriction has been lifted, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy confirmed to The Times on Wednesday morning.
There is one caveat, however — Brady must attend those meetings remotely. He is still prohibited from going to a team facility for practices or production meetings, McCarthy said.
Brady is allowed to interview players off site, as he did on occassion last year, McCarthy said.
Like last year, Brady can’t “egregiously criticize officials,” said McCarthy, who added there were no issues along those lines in 2024.
Brady, a seven-time Super Bowl champion with the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was allowed by the league to attend the production meetings ahead of Super Bowl LIX in February.
The Athletic was first to report the loosening of the restrictions on Brady.
SO far, everything she’s touched has been TV gold – but one of Alison Hammond’s shows is now heading to the TV scrapyard.
Over the past few years the This Morning presenter has landed a string of big programmes including ITV’s For The Love Of Dogs, Channel 4’s Great British Bake Off and her Big Weekend chat show for the BBC.
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Sky has axed Rob Beckett’s Smart TV which featured Alison Hammond and Josh Widdicombe as team captainsCredit: PA
But I can reveal that after just two series, the axe is falling on Rob Beckett’s Smart TV, the Sky panel show which featured her as a team captain alongside host Rob and fellow captain Josh Widdicombe.
A TV insider said: “It’s a surprise, given the show was well received.
“But Sky are increasingly turning their focus towards talent-led shows.
“They’ve already announced they’re bringing to an end another hugely popular stablemate, the sports panel contest, A League of Their Own.
read more on alison hammond
“It’s part of a pivot towards shows which don’t just feature talent but are fronted by them on a personal level — for example Danny and Danni Dyer‘s upcoming show where they operate a caravan park, as well as the new Gemma Collins documentary following her getting married and having IVF.”
Alison was being talked about as a major signing for Sky in 2022, which was before details of Smart TV had even been confirmed.
Bosses heralded her as “a brilliant addition”, saying they hoped to give her more projects, adding: “We don’t really golden handcuff any of our entertainment talent, but we do keep them busy so they sort of feel ‘a bit Sky’.”
A spokeswoman for Sky said yesterday: “After two brilliant series testing the telly knowledge of the nation, it is time for us to roll the credits on Rob Beckett’s Smart TV.
“Our huge thanks to the TV quizzing trio, Rob Beckett, Alison Hammond, and Josh Widdicombe who brought all the laughs to screen.
“We look forward to working together again.”
Alison Hammond, 50, shows off her huge ‘baby bump’ as she hits back at pregnancy rumours with toyboy lover, 27
Bizbit
IRISH detective drama Borderline is coming to ITVX in October.
Starring Line Of Duty’s Amy De Bhrun, and Eoin Macken, the six-part series follows two clashing police officers who are forced to collaborate on a serious crime.
It comes from the writer of Cold Feet, John Forte.
STEEL IN TEST OF METTLE
STEEL the Gladiator’s heart is as big as his biceps.
The BBC muscle man – real name Zack George – heads into the final stages of his 13 Days Fighting challenge for a baby-loss charity.
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Gladiator Steel pictured with TV’s Joe Wicks
He has so far raised more than £25,000 for Leo & Friends, to honour his son Leo who died at 13 days old.
Since August 18, Zack has completed a mile of burpees every day, with a stage in Cambridge today, followed by Loughborough later this week.
Pals including Gladiator Legend and fitness guru Joe Wicks have joined him along the way.
Zack said yesterday: “Extremely tired, body is sore and can hardly walk with the calf – but we’re getting it done.
“I wanted a challenge where I had to fight, like Leo did for 13 days.”
For more details and to support, see Zack’s Instagram page @zackgeorge.
SHERIDAN SHOCK AT KATE JOB
MANY will recall the bizarre moment on This Morning when Gyles Brandreth wrongly claimed Sheridan Smith was going to play Kate Middleton in a new drama.
But not Sheridan, who was blissfully unaware of the clanger 17 months ago.
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Sheridan Smith will not be playing Kate Middleton in a new dramaCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
She was shown the clip during an interview on Capital Radio yesterday and seemed as stunned as the rest of us.
The actress said: “How have I missed that?
“They actually announced that like it was real?
“Oh stop it, this is getting out of hand.
“That’s hysterical.”
Strangely, Sheridan’s pals often send her clips and memes, but didn’t pass on the one from This Morning.
A BLUE PETER BADGE? THAT’S F.A.B., ANTHEA
HERE’S one that Anthea Turner wishes she made earlier.
The veteran TV presenter has finally been awarded the top Blue Peter badge, more than three decades after her two-year stint on the children’s TV show ended in 1994.
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Anthea Turner has finally been awarded the top Blue Peter badgeCredit: James Stack
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Anthea in 1993 with her famous model from the showCredit: Rex Features
She picked up a highly-coveted Gold badge to mark the BBC series’ new era as HACKER T DOG joins cast members Abby Cook, Joel Mawhinney and Shini Muthukrishnan.
Anthea said: “I have coveted the golden Blue Peter badge for so many years and never got one – and now they’ve put this right.
“All these years I’ve been without one, and at every Blue Peter event I’ve hoped I would get one.
“It’s now even become a standing joke. So this is my proudest moment and I won’t forget it.”
Meanwhile, I’ll always remember her as the brains behind Blue Peter’s most famous “make” – a loo roll Tracy Island from The Thunderbirds.
Totally F.A.B.
DANNY’S RIVALS LIFELINE
DANNY DYER was “thrown a lifeline” when Rivals show boss Dominic Treadwell-Collins gave him the role of Freddie Jones in the Disney+ bonkbuster.
The actor and director had worked together on EastEnders.
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Danny Dyer says Rivals gave him a career after EastendersCredit: Getty
But after Danny left in 2022, it’s fair to say his career was a bit patchy.
Talking at the Edinburgh TV Festival, Angellica Bell recalled speaking to him behind the scenes when he was a guest on The One Show and she was hosting.
She said: “I took him to one side and I said, ‘Oh my gosh you are insane in Rivals, and he was almost brought to tears.
“I saw him again and he sat down and he said to me, ‘Dominic gave me a lifeline, he saw something in me and it is like a renaissance.’
“He said not many people have given him an opportunity where he can grow in his art.
Watch: A look back at Alan Yentob’s colourful, creative career
Alan Yentob, the long-serving BBC arts broadcaster and documentary-maker, has died aged 78.
Yentob profiled and interviewed a wide range of important cultural and creative figures over the years, including David Bowie, Charles Saatchi, Maya Angelou and Grayson Perry, for TV series such as Omnibus, Arena and Imagine.
He also served as controller of BBC One and Two, and the organisation’s creative director and head of music and arts during a long and varied career.
Paying tribute to her late husband, Philippa Walker described Yentob as “curious, funny, annoying, late and creative in every cell of his body” and added that he was “the kindest of men”.
BBC director-general Tim Davie called him a “creative force and cultural visionary” who championed “originality, risk-taking and artistic ambition”.
He added: “To work with Alan was to be inspired and encouraged to think bigger. He had a rare gift for identifying talent and lifting others up – a mentor and champion to so many across the worlds of television, film and theatre.
“Above all, Alan was a true original. His passion wasn’t performative – it was personal. He believed in the power of culture to enrich, challenge and connect us.”
Yentob was known for his connections in the entertainment industry, often befriending his famous film subjects who included music stars Jay-Z and Beyoncé, actors and filmmakers Orson Welles and Mel Brooks, and author Salman Rushdie.
Synonymous with the BBC, Yentob was seen by viewers engaging in an arm wrestle with Rushdie while listening to opera in a scene taken from W1A – a sitcom which satirised life at the corporation.
Yentob’s famous 1975 Omnibus feature, Cracked Actor, about David Bowie, showed the drug-affected star opening up to him in the back of a limousine at an “intensely creative time”, the filmmaker later recalled, but also at the singer’s most “fragile and exhausted”.
Yentob, who made the Omnibus documentary Cracked Actor about David Bowie in 1975, interviewed the singer again as he approached his 50th birthday
Yentob became controller of BBC Two in 1988, making him one of the youngest channel controllers in the corporation’s history.
He oversaw a popular and influential period for the channel, with commissions such as hit sitcom Absolutely Fabulous – where his name was dropped into the dialogue of one episode as an in-joke
Other shows launched during his tenure included The Late Show and Have I Got News for You.
Yentob’s success in the role saw him promoted to controller of BBC One from 1993 to 1997, before a stint as BBC television’s overall director of programmes.
He was announced as the corporation’s creative director in 2004, a role he filled for more than a decade. But he continued to step in front of the camera to front more Imagine programmes, including the final episode of that series, a profile of comedic duo French & Saunders.
His commissions also included a TV adaptation of Pride and Prejudice and children’s channels CBBC and CBeebies.
Salman Rushdie (left) and Alan Yentob were seen arm wrestling in an episode of BBC parody W1A
Actress and comedian Dawn French shared a picture of her and Jennifer Saunders with the late broadcaster on X, saying: “We’ve lost a tip top chap.”
“Our advocate from the start,” she added.
In a post on social media platform Bluesky, pop group the Pet Shop Boys described Yentob as “a legend in British TV, responsible for some of the BBC’s finest programmes”.
The pop duo were the subject of one of Yentob’s Imagine documentaries.
Comedian David Baddiel, who took part in Yentob’s 2011 series The Art of Stand-Up, called him a “king of TV” as he shared a photo of the pair drinking wine together.
BBC Radio 4 Today presenter Amol Rajan also paid tribute, saying: “He was such a unique and kind man: an improbable impresario from unlikely origins who became a towering figure in the culture of post-war Britain.
“Modern art never had a more loyal ally. His shows were always brilliant, often masterpieces, sometimes seminal. So much of Britain’s best TV over five decades came via his desk. That was public Alan. In private, he was magnetic, zealous, and very funny, with a mesmerising voice and mischievous chuckle.”
Yentob’s long and successful career at the BBC was not without controversy.
Yentob said the speculation over his conduct – which included claims he had tried to influence the BBC coverage of the charity’s demise – had been “proving a serious distraction” when the BBC was in “particularly challenging times”.
Yentob continued to make many more programmes for the broadcaster, and was subsequently appointed a CBE in 2024 for services to the arts and media.
He is survived by his wife, TV producer Philippa Walker, and their two children.
