TV Live Forum

DavidWhitfield post_id=38060 time= user_id=1016 Wrote:Today marks seven weeks since all distancing restrictions were lifted in England. Finding it hard to see 'This Morning' reducing their spacing to 'only' 1 metre today as good news.

As I've said previously, I'd really rather see things getting back to normal now, and after nineteen months of distancing (and after seven weeks of 'being allowed' to sit together like normal human beings again), I'd really hoped we'd start seeing this reflected on screen as the new ITV Daytime season began.

Yes, dropping from two metres to one metre is a sign that things are slowly but surely progressing back to normality, but it still seems excessive to me personally.

I know from the reaction to my comments last time I made them that most of you disagree with me about this, but I can't help but want to just get on with life properly again and expunge any evidence of the last year and a half from my mind. Putting the telly on and seeing presenters still sitting apart from each other is just another little reminder that 'don't get too comfortable, everything's still terrible' which I could do without. :?

Just how I feel personally. I'm well aware the vast majority of you will vehemently disagree with me, as you are welcome to do.

I’m not sure necessarily it’s good news in itself, I think the posters were just saying that it looked a little better presentation wise, in their opinion. My opinion is that I couldn’t care less how far presenters are apart, GMB which is the programme I watch the most of from ITV daytime, looks fine to me - and as does This Morning on the occasions I’ve watched.

I think what’s worth bearing in mind is that we don’t want to stray into personal circumstances too much. It could be that some of team both and on screen wish to keep or the employer themselves want to keep a level of social distancing for their own reasons. I for instance have friend who’s in a vulnerable category and is still being told to work from home, they haven’t offered a return to the office as yet. I have another friend in hospitality who still has to wear a face mask for the duration of their ten hour shifts, with the exception of a break. So there is medical matters to contend with, a level of expecting of customers/viewers plus employees feeling comfortable at work too. Susanna Reid has spoken somewhat openly on GMB about not ‘hugging’ and seemingly wanting to keep some social distance despite official eases of restrictions, and that maybe her putting across an alternative view point not necessarily her own, but as any HR person would tell us it’s important to keep staff wellbeing and safety a top priority.

I'd just ditch the sofa for now and put in some armchairs for the presenter side with a coffee table between them - will look a lot more natural whilst still maintaining a distance.

adamiow post_id=38078 time= user_id=1277 Wrote:I'd just ditch the sofa for now and put in some armchairs for the presenter side with a coffee table between them - will look a lot more natural whilst still maintaining a distance.

They just need to go back to this...


Or this...



The good old days of This Morning!!

Don't you think if that was an option, it would've been done by now?

While I do agree that it looks a little bit crazy to keep up the distancing on screen while 'normal life' seems to be heading back to pre-Covid times, are they not keeping some sort of restrictions in place to ensure everyone stays safe?

Keeping Phil & Holly apart means that if one of them does test positive, other (should they be double jabbed) wouldn't need to self isolate? Thus keeping half the presenting team on air?

Good points being made, and I understand the need to take into account how the presenters themselves feel, and, of course, different people will have different sensitivities to it all and will feel comfortable loosening things at different rates.

Ash101 post_id=38081 time= user_id=936 Wrote:Keeping Phil & Holly apart means that if one of them does test positive, other (should they be double jabbed) wouldn't need to self isolate? Thus keeping half the presenting team on air?

Agree this seems logical, but if this is indeed ITV's thinking, my question would be: where does it end? The virus is here now, it's not going to suddenly vanish, as much as I'm sure we'd all like it to. With this in mind, are the presenters still going to be a metre (or two metres, on other programmes) apart in a month's time? What about this time next year? Or maybe in a decade's time? If you're in close contact with someone who is unwell with something contagious, then you can catch what they've got. This has always been the case, and always will be. But for how long are people going to be kept apart over COVID? Just on the off-chance? When is the cut-off where we decide 'it's fine for people to sit together again now'? If not now, as the government releases all limits on distancing, then when? When will it suddenly become 'safe'?

DavidWhitfield post_id=38089 time= user_id=1016 Wrote:

Ash101 post_id=38081 time= user_id=936 Wrote:Keeping Phil & Holly apart means that if one of them does test positive, other (should they be double jabbed) wouldn't need to self isolate? Thus keeping half the presenting team on air?

Agree this seems logical, but if this is indeed ITV's thinking, my question would be: where does it end? The virus is here now, it's not going to suddenly vanish, as much as I'm sure we'd all like it to. With this in mind, are the presenters still going to be a metre (or two metres, on other programmes) apart in a month's time? What about this time next year? Or maybe in a decade's time? If you're in close contact with someone who is unwell with something contagious, then you can catch what they've got. This has always been the case, and always will be. But for how long are people going to be kept apart over COVID? Just on the off-chance? When is the cut-off where we decide 'it's fine for people to sit together again now'? If not now, as the government releases all limits on distancing, then when? When will it suddenly become 'safe'?

Good point. It'll be interesting to see if Ant & Dec mention anything about having to form another 'cohort' and be tested every few days again when they set off for Wales.

Is it still in the Covid guidelines for TV production or are all the companies just taking extra precautions themselves? Because on her podcast, Katherine Ryan has mentioned filming a few bits in the last few weeks (a new series for Amazon Prime & bits of Ready To Mingle for ITV2) and has spoken about all the testing that is still in place etc?

Ash101 post_id=38094 time= user_id=936 Wrote:Is it still in the Covid guidelines for TV production or are all the companies just taking extra precautions themselves? Because on her podcast, Katherine Ryan has mentioned filming a few bits in the last few weeks (a new series for Amazon Prime & bits of Ready To Mingle for ITV2) and has spoken about all the testing that is still in place etc?

I believe it is still in the guidelines and almost certainly required by insurance.

DavidWhitfield post_id=38089 time=1630947586 user_id=1016 Wrote:Agree this seems logical, but if this is indeed ITV's thinking, my question would be: where does it end? The virus is here now, it's not going to suddenly vanish, as much as I'm sure we'd all like it to. With this in mind, are the presenters still going to be a metre (or two metres, on other programmes) apart in a month's time? What about this time next year? Or maybe in a decade's time? If you're in close contact with someone who is unwell with something contagious, then you can catch what they've got. This has always been the case, and always will be. But for how long are people going to be kept apart over COVID? Just on the off-chance? When is the cut-off where we decide 'it's fine for people to sit together again now'? If not now, as the government releases all limits on distancing, then when? When will it suddenly become 'safe'?

I think the cut off is when the country is open and the virus is in continuous decline. Only one of those things has happened so far.

Without straying into the politics we're been at 30,000+ cases a day for the last few weeks compared to 1500 a day in August 2020 and a higher death figure too so the reality is the pandemic isn't as over as some people think it is.

I think gradually easing production protocols to be like it was pre pandemic is the sensible way to go. Keep in mind that once oral treatments are widely available which I think will happen within the next 6-12 months, it'll mean the risk will go down as well.

Did this morning open about Sarah Harding’s passing this morning?

Ballyboy post_id=38116 time=1630956348 user_id=982 Wrote:Did this morning open about Sarah Harding’s passing this morning?

https://twitter.com/thismorning/status/1...00834?s=20

DavidWhitfield post_id=38089 time= user_id=1016 Wrote:Agree this seems logical, but if this is indeed ITV's thinking, my question would be: where does it end? The virus is here now, it's not going to suddenly vanish, as much as I'm sure we'd all like it to. With this in mind, are the presenters still going to be a metre (or two metres, on other programmes) apart in a month's time? What about this time next year? Or maybe in a decade's time? If you're in close contact with someone who is unwell with something contagious, then you can catch what they've got. This has always been the case, and always will be. But for how long are people going to be kept apart over COVID? Just on the off-chance? When is the cut-off where we decide 'it's fine for people to sit together again now'? If not now, as the government releases all limits on distancing, then when? When will it suddenly become 'safe'?

Like it or not, Covid still poses a huge risk and therefore every production has to have an appropriate risk assessment that will satisfy insurance.

I guess as it’s Friday tomorrow they’ll skip the annual ‘Phil and Holly are in a wreck the morning after the NTAs routine’

UTVLifer post_id=38715 time= user_id=1030 Wrote:I guess as it’s Friday tomorrow they’ll skip the annual ‘Phil and Holly are in a wreck the morning after the NTAs routine’

To be honest that's probably one reason why it's been moved to Thursday night.

They'll probably still be out at 10am.