| Date | Event |
|---|
| 1 | BBC One sees in the New Year with the concert Rick Astley Rocks New Year's Eve. Rick Astley is joined by various guests, including Rylan Clark-Neal with whom he performs a rendition of the Dead or Alive track "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)".[1] |
| STV's Bringing in the Bells is hosted by Alex Norton, Blythe Duff, Martin Compston and others to see in the New Year.[2] |
| 2 | TV chef Simon Rimmer announces that Greens, a Manchester-based vegetarian restaurant of which he is co-owner, is closing with immediate effect after 33 years.[3] |
| The running times of BBC Breakfast and Morning Live are extended. BBC Breakfast runs until 9.30 with Morning Live airtime extended to 75 minutes, giving that programme a transmission slot of 9.30 to 10.45.[4] |
| 3 | Former Chancellor of the Exchequer Nadhim Zahawi makes a guest appearance in the ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office as himself, questioning Post Office chief executive Paula Vennells in a 2015 House of Commons committee inquiry into the Horizon computer system.[5] |
| 5 | ITV criticises ex-footballer Joey Barton after he likened Eni Aluko and Lucy Ward, who were commentating on a football match the previous evening, to serial killers Fred and Rose West. ITV describes the remarks on X as "vindictive".[6] |
| Lawyers representing potential victims of the British Post Office scandal say they have been contacted by a further 50 people following the broadcast of the four-episode series ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office.[7] |
| 8 | Ofcom delays the publication of research into politicians presenting news programmes until it has ruled on investigations open into GB News.[8] |
| The BBC wins the free to air rights to rugby league's Super League and World Club Challenge, beating Channel 4. The rights are on a three-year contract, and matches will be shown on BBC Two, BBC Three and BBC iPlayer.[9] |
| The weekday editions of Sky News Breakfast are refreshed. The programme starts at the earlier time of 6am, and new presenters join the programme.[10] |
| 9 | Provisional viewing figures indicate that 9.2 million people have watched the ITV drama Mr Bates vs the Post Office, making it the most watched programme of 2024 so far.[11] Subsequent data, which includes catch-up, put the figure at 9.75m.[12] |
| 11 | The Liberal Democrats ask Ofcom to investigate GB News over alleged bias in its coverage of the Post Office scandal, including what the party's deputy leader, Daisy Cooper, describes as "a fictitious monologue" Nigel Farage delivered about leader Sir Ed Davey, which she says contained "a number of factual inaccuracies".[13] |
| 13 | Gladiators returns for its third run on BBC One and BBC iPlayer with Bradley Walsh and his son Barney presenting. The show was previously aired on ITV from 1992 to 2000 and Sky One from 2008 to 2009. The revival has attracted an audience of 6 million viewers, becoming the biggest entertainment launch for the BBC in seven years.[14] [15] |
| EastEnders confirms that Patsy Palmer is to briefly reprise her role as Bianca Jackson later in the year following her departure from the series in 2019.[16] |
| 14 | Dancing on Ice returns for its sixteenth series on ITV with Stephen Mulhern and Holly Willoughby presenting, Mulhern having succeeded Phillip Schofield as co-presenter.[17] [18] Willoughby makes her return to television following her departure from This Morning.[19] |
| Debut of Smooth Radio's new television advertising campaign featuring famous UK landmarks and its new strapline, "Always the best music", which launches in a commercial break during the opening edition of Dancing on Ice.[20] |
| 15 | Love Island returns with an "All Stars" series, with the launch show episode being broadcast simultaneously on ITV1 and ITV2, featuring former contestants from the past ten series.[21] |
| The BBC announces that Shini Muthukrishnan will become the 43rd presenter of Blue Peter.[22] |
| Sky Showcase begins simulcasting selected programming from Sky Atlantic. |
| 16 | Rhodri Williams announces he has written to the UK government to ask them not to consider him for a second term as chairman of S4C following controversy at the TV channel.[23] |
| 17 | The BBC has agreed a deal with insurance company Axa to sell its Elstree Studios, which includes the EastEnders set. The set will be leased back from Axa so that filming can continue there.[24] |
| An error with the calculation of viewing figures that had given GB News a million viewers for its New Year's Eve coverage is corrected by BARB, and shows the channel actually had 33,000 viewers that evening.[25] |
| 18 | Kim Medcalf makes an unannounced departure from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, two years after returning to the soap as the character Sam Mitchell.[26] |
| 22 | The World launches on Sky News. The hour-long international news programme airs Monday to Thursday at 9pm and is part of Sky News' evening sequence of individually branded, and focussed, hour-long programmes.[27] [28] |
| The UK government announces plans to give Ofcom more powers over the BBC's online content, including BBC News.[29] |
| The UK government rejects calls from Welsh MPs to add the Six Nations Championship to the list of guaranteed free-to-air sporting events on British television.[30] |
| 24 | The 2024 Brit Award nominees are announced. Raye received the most nominations with seven in total, breaking the record for the most nominations received by a single artist in a year. |
| 25 | Campaigners for myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) have criticised BBC One's Dragons' Den for promoting a product with "unfounded" claims after a businesswoman appeared on the show promoting a product she claimed had helped improve her ME.[31] The episode is subsequently edited to include an onscreen message during the businesswoman's appearance.[32] |
| 26 | Harry Clark wins series two of The Traitors.[33] [34] |
| 29 | Channel 4 announces the loss of 200 jobs as it seeks to slim down the organisation and focus on digital services.[35] |
| 30 | The BBC releases around 3,000 emails relating to Martin Bashir's 1995 Panorama interview with Diana, Princess of Wales after a judge ordered their release.[36] |
| Sky announces plans to cut 1,000 jobs in the UK during 2024 as it moves towards internet-based services.[37] |
| ITV announces that Alison Hammond will replace Paul O'Grady as presenter of For the Love of Dogs.[38] | |
| Date | Event |
|---|
| 2 | Construction work begins on The Tea Factory, the BBC's new Birmingham & West Midland headquarters.[39] |
| 5 | Kate Garraway makes her first television appearance since the death of her husband, Derek Draper, and gives an interview to Good Morning Britain.[40] |
| 8 | Kate Garraway returns to her presenting role on Good Morning Britain, presenting alongside Ben Shephard.[41] |
| TalkTV airs the final edition of Piers Morgan Uncensored to be shown regularly on the channel. In a subsequent interview with The Times, Morgan announces he is moving the show to his YouTube channel, where he can conduct longer and more in-depth interviews without the "unnecessary straitjacket" of television, and build a global following. TalkTV says some of Morgan's shows will continue to air on the channel.[42] |
| ITV announces that 25 James Bond films will be made available through the ITVX platform from March.[43] |
| 10 | ITV and Guinness trial live audio described commentary for blind and partially sighted viewers of the 2024 Six Nations match between England and Wales.[44] |
| 12 | Prime Minister Rishi Sunak appears on an hour long GB News People's Forum, where a selected audience of undecided voters are invited to ask him questions. The programme is presented by Stephen Dixon.[45] |
| 13 | The BBC announces the closure of the BBC iPlayer downloads service for desktop and laptop computers from 8 April; downloads will still be available for users of the BBC iPlayer app on mobile and tablet, and streaming remains possible on all devices.[46] |
| The US entertainment website Deadline.com reports that Gavin & Stacey will be returning for a 2024 Christmas special, five years after the last one. But there is some official announcement from BBC Studios.[47] [48] |
| 15 | The BBC confirms that Asif Munaf, a contestant on The Apprentice, will not appear on the spin-off show, , when he exits the show after posting antisemitic comments on social media.[49] |
| 16 | BBC Four airs four editions of Top of the Pops that were presented by Steve Wright as a tribute to the disc jockey following the announcement of his death a few days earlier.[50] |
| ITV confirms that Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley will be the new permanent presenters of This Morning following the departure of Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield in 2023.[51] |
| 18 | The 2024 BAFTA Awards are held at London's Royal Festival Hall and presented by David Tennant.[52] |
| 19 | Ofcom launches an impartiality investigation into GB News's Q&A session with prime minister Rishi Sunak.[53] |
| Piers Morgan Uncensored begins airing regularly on Morgan's YouTube channel. |
| Molly Smith and Tom Clare win the first series of Love Island All Stars. Overnight viewing figures from BARB estimate the finale, aired on ITV2, is viewed by an audience of just over a million, while ITV says that with catch-up viewing the total figure is 1.3 million.[54] |
| 20 | The BBC announces plans to reshape the BBC Scotland TV channel, including axing the hour-long news programme The Nine and replacing it with a 30-minute programme.[55] |
| Idles singer Joe Talbot becomes the latest celebrity to appear on CBeebies Bedtime Stories, where he reads Under The Love Umbrella by Davina Bell.[56] |
| 21 | Maryam Moshiri relaunches The World Today at 7pm as an evening programme on BBC News.[57] [58] |
| McFly band members Tom Fletcher and Danny Jones will share a chair on the judging panel of The Voice UK when the series returns. US country singer LeAnn Rimes will also join the panel, alongside Sir Tom Jones and Will.i.am.[59] |
| The Metropolitan Police says it would take further action over allegations that Dan Wootton offered to pay colleagues for sexually explicit pictures of themselves.[60] |
| 23 | Ben Shephard presents his final edition of Good Morning Britain ahead of his new role co-presenting This Morning.[61] |
| 24 | Lee Anderson is suspended from the Conservative Party after "refusing to apologise" for claiming "Islamists" had "got control" of London Mayor Sadiq Khan during an edition of his GB News show the previous day.[62] |
| 27 | The BBC apologises for the way it dealt with a complaint about the newsreader Huw Edwards, saying the issue was not escalated quickly enough.[63] |
| Comedian Jason Manford is to join the cast of Waterloo Road when the series returns later in the year.[64] | |
| Date | Event |
|---|
| 1 | The final day of recording of Doctors takes place at the BBC's Birmingham & West Midland studios; the series along with Classic Doctors is scheduled to end in December after nearly 5,000 episodes.[65] |
| 4 | Following its investigation into the episode of GB News's Dan Wootton Tonight during which Laurence Fox made comments about journalist Ava Evans, Ofcom concludes that the programme was in breach of its regulations. The watchdog says the comments "constituted a highly personal attack on Ms Evans and were potentially highly offensive to viewers", and says that it has "significant concerns about GB News' editorial control of its live output" and is requiring it "provide further detailed information about its compliance practices in this area".[66] |
| Celebrity Big Brother returns to British television after a six-year break for a twenty-third series. Housemates include Gary Goldsmith, the uncle of Catherine, Princess of Wales.[67] |
| 5 | News UK announces plans to close TalkTV in the summer, with its content switching to online format.[68] TalkRadio will continue unaffected.[69] |
| Dan Wootton announces his departure from GB News following the previous day's Ofcom ruling.[70] |
| 7 | The winners of the BBC's 2024 500 Words young writers' competition are announced, with awards presented by Queen Camilla.[71] |
| 10 | Ryan Thomas and professional dance partner Amani Fancy win series 16 of Dancing on Ice. Greg Rutherford is forced to withdraw from the final after sustaining an injury during rehearsals.[72] |
| 11 | Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley make their presenting debut on This Morning.[73] |
| 12 | The Radio Today website reports that Bauer Media Audio UK plans to remove its radio stations from Freeview in the coming months.[74] |
| 14 | Former Conservative MP Guto Bebb is appointed interim chair of S4C.[75] |
| 15 | Sir Lenny Henry presents the BBC's Comic Relief telethon for the last time, having previously announced he felt it was time for "new faces" to succeed him.[76] Sir Lenny was part of the team which had founded Comic Relief in the mid-1980s. Red Nose Day 2024 raises over £40m for charity.[77] |
| 16 | Derek Thompson makes his final appearance in Casualty as the character Charlie Fairhead after 38 years with the series and appearances in more than 900 episodes.[78] |
| 18 | Ofcom finds that five episodes of GB News shows, presented by Jacob Rees Mogg, Esther McVey and Phillip Davies, broke their rules, and warns the channel about its use of Conservative MPs to host news content.[79] |
| 21 | Channel 4 chief executive Alex Mahon apologises to a member of the television channel's staff after a report finds that Channel 4 failed to investigate a complaint made against Russell Brand in 2009.[80] |
| The UK government appoints a panel of nine experts from the world of radio, television and business to advise on the future funding of the BBC.[81] |
| 22 | David Potts wins the twenty-third series of Celebrity Big Brother.[82] |
| 26 | BBC Director General Tim Davie announces the BBC will look at ways of reforming the TV licence.[83] |
| 27 | Luke Avaient and Gavin Sheppard of Cardiff are married by Lorraine Kelly live on her daytime ITV programme to mark the tenth anniversary of the first same-sex marriage to occur in the UK.[84] |
| 28 | The BBC confirms that Freddie Flintoff, who was injured in 2022 while filming an episode of Top Gear, will return to television with a BBC One documentary about cricket titled Field of Dreams.[85] |
| 29 | Olly Alexander rejects calls to withdraw from the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest over the inclusion of Israel.[86] |
| 30 | Finlay Anderson and Marie-Louise Nicholson win the 2024 series of Gladiators.[87] | |
| Date | Event |
|---|
| 1 | The cost of a TV licence increases by £10.50 from £159 to £169.50.[88] |
| Ruth Hart wins the 2023–24 series of Mastermind.[89] |
| 4 | GB News hires Steven Edgington as its North America correspondent, making him the channel's first international correspondent.[90] |
| 5 | The BBC confirms it will broadcast a celebrity special of Gladiators,[91] having previously announced that the show will return for a second series.[92] |
| 8 | Imperial College London wins the 2023–24 series of University Challenge, the fifth time they have become series champion.[93] |
| 11 | The Metropolitan Police says it will partly reinvestigate its decision to charge late television presenter Caroline Flack with assaulting her boyfriend because "new witness evidence may be available".[94] |
| Sky News reports that hedge fund manager Sir Paul Marshall is to relinquish his seat on the board of All Perspectives Ltd, the company that owns GB News, as the television channel faces a major restructuring process.[95] |
| 12 | The BBC confirms that Varada Sethu will be joining Millie Gibson as a companion in the fifteenth series of Doctor Who.[96] |
| 13 | Boom Radio announces the launch of a £500,000 advertising campaign on ITV1, its first on the channel. Jo Brand has also been hired to present a series of programmes in which she interviews prominent television personalities, including Michael Grade.[97] |
| ITV1 airs the two-hour finale of the 2024 series of Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, which is watched by an average audience of 4.6 million viewers.[98] |
| 15 | Disney is reportedly planning to add linear cable-style streaming channels to Disney+. According to The Information, the company wants subscribers to spend more time in the app and, by offering more viewing options, it may entice users to stick around. In addition, by running ads on these channels, Disney could boost its bottom line.[99] |
| 17 | The Hollywood Reporter has reported that Johnny Ferraro is to bring back American Gladiators following the BBC's successful reboot of the British version.[100] |
| 18 | Boutique gym boss Rachel Woodford wins Series 18 of The Apprentice.[101] |
| 19 | GB News chief executive Angelos Frangopoulos announces 40 redundancies at the channel after it previously posted heavy financial losses.[102] |
| 20 | BBC Two celebrates 60 years of broadcasting with several special programmes shown in the days surrounding the anniversary.[103] [104] |
| 22 | Newsreader Huw Edwards resigns from the BBC, nine months after being suspended following allegations of sexual misconduct and being admitted to hospital with "serious mental health issues".[105] |
| Brenda Blethyn announces the next series of Vera will be her last after she decides to leave the show.[106] |
| 23 | It is announced that Olly Alexander will make a cameo appearance in EastEnders in May.[107] |
| 24 | ITV's managing director of media and entertainment, Kevin Lygo, says that the drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office lost the broadcaster £1m.[108] |
| Ofcom warns radio and television stations with programmes hosted by politicians that they could be fined if they break impartiality rules in the run up to the next general election.[109] |
| 26 | Newsreader Rageh Omaar is taken ill while presenting News at Ten and subsequently receives medical treatment.[110] |
| 29 | Talk switches from television to online streaming format.[111] The cessation of linear broadcasting sees the channel drop the letters TV from its name. The Local TV network, which adopted the Talk name in October 2023, reverts to using the Local TV name.[112] |
| 30 | BritBox shuts down its standalone service in the UK with all of its content moving over to both BBC iPlayer and ITVX. | |
| Date | Event |
|---|
| 1 | Television news presenters Martine Croxall, Annita McVeigh, Karin Giannone and Kasia Madera launch legal action against the BBC on the grounds of sex and age discrimination and equal pay.[113] Their case for equal pay is subsequently rejected, but the sex and age discrimination cases will be heard by a tribunal.[114] |
| 2 | Don Gilet is named as the next lead detective in Death in Paradise; he will join the next series of the show as Detective Inspector Mervin Wilson.[115] |
| Welsh language broadcaster S4C announces that it will broadcast a Welsh language version of ITV programme The Voice. The show, titled Y Llais, will be hosted by BBC Radio 1 DJ Sian Eleri and will be broadcast in 2025.[116] |
| 3 | The BBC announces that Joanna Lumley will reveal the UK jury's results at the Eurovision Song Contest.[117] |
| 10 | Doctor Who returns for its 14th series, beginning with a two episode premiere on BBC iPlayer in the UK, and Disney+ internationally on the same evening, before airing in its normal Saturday night slot on BBC One the following day for the first time.[118] |
| The Rise of Race Hatred, a BBC Spotlight documentary exploring the rise in race hate attacks in Northern Ireland wins the nations and regions category at the Amnesty UK Media Awards.[119] |
| 11 | Olly Alexander represents the United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 in Malmö, Sweden. The UK comes in 18th place out of 25 contestants. The contest is won by Switzerland with Nemo and their song "The Code".[120] |
| 12 | The 2024 BAFTA Television Awards take place at the Royal Festival Hall, hosted by Rob Beckett and Romesh Ranganathan.[121] |
| 17 | James Ward Anderson, boss of plumbing firm Depher, complains to Ofcom over a BBC News investigation alleging his company faked stories of good deeds.[122] |
| 20 | Ofcom says it is considering imposing a statutory sanction against GB News after concluding its programme People's Forum: The Prime Minister, a Q&A session with prime minister Rishi Sunak that aired in February, broke impartiality rules.[123] |
| 22 | ITV airs episode 10,000 of Emmerdale.[124] |
| 23 | GB News announces plans to launch legal action against Ofcom after the regulator ruled the channel had broken broadcasting rules.[125] |
| Shona McGarty's final EastEnders scenes air as her character Whitney Dean leaves the series after 16 years.[126] |
| 25 | A spokesperson for Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford confirms the presenting couple are to divorce after 14 years of marriage.[127] |
| 27 | Newsnight relaunches as a half-hour "interview, debate and discussion" programme, ditching its special reporting team. The change is part of cost-cutting measures across the BBC.[128] [129] [130] |
| 28 | BBC News announces that its election night coverage will be hosted by Clive Myrie and Laura Kuenssberg.[131] |
| 29 | Alfie Watts and Owen Wood win Series Four of Race Across the World.[132] | |
| Date | Event |
|---|
| 2 | Singer Sydnie Christmas wins the 2024 series of Britain's Got Talent.[133] |
| 3 | The BBC News at One is extended to an hour-long programme to coincide with its move from London to Salford.[134] |
| Love Island returns for an eleventh series with a launch episode airing simultaneously on ITV1 and ITV2, which sees Joey Essex enter the villa as the first ever celebrity "bombshell".[135] |
| The first 2024 general election leaders debate takes place in Scotland, with the leaders of Scotland's four main political parties taking part in a debate on STV.[136] |
| 4 | ITV1 airs Sunak vs Starmer: The ITV Debate, a head-to-head election debate between Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer presented by Julie Etchingham.[137] |
| Netflix confirms plans for a Peaky Blinders film in which Cillian Murphy will reprise his role as Tommy Shelby.[138] |
| 5 | ITV announces that Helen Worth has decided to leave Coronation Street after 50 years of portraying Gail Platt, with the character making her departure from the soap later in the year.[139] |
| 6 | A search is under way for television presenter Michael Mosley, who has disappeared while on holiday in the Greek island of Symi.[140] |
| 7 | Mishal Husain moderates the first of the BBC's election debates featuring representatives from seven of the UK's political parties.[141] |
| 8 | Katie Piper is forced to pull out of presenting her usual Saturday morning ITV Breakfast programme due to an "unexpected medical procedure". The programme is instead presented by Charlotte Hawkins.[142] |
| Around 20,000 motorcyclists celebrate "Dave Day" by riding from London to Barrow-in-Furness in memory of Hairy Biker Dave Myers, who died in February.[143] |
| 9 | The body of Michael Mosley is found on a hillside near Agia Marina beach on Symi.[144] |
| 10 | An initial post-mortem concludes that Michael Mosley died from natural causes.[145] |
| The BBC publishes the line up of dancers to appear on the 2024 series of Strictly Come Dancing. The list includes Amy Dowden, who is scheduled to return following cancer treatment, while Giovanni Pernice will not return.[146] |
| 11 | Sophie Raworth pulls out of presenting the BBC's The Prime Ministerial Debate, scheduled to air on 26 June, after fracturing her ankle; Mishal Husain will present instead.[147] |
| BBC Scotland airs an election debate featuring the leaders of Scotland's five main political parties: John Swinney (SNP), Douglas Ross (Scottish Conservatives), Anas Sarwar (Scottish Labour), Alex Cole-Hamilton (Scottish Liberal Democrats) and Lorna Slater (Scottish Greens).[148] |
| 12 | Sky News presenter Beth Rigby presents an election debate from Grimsby Town Hall, where Sunak and Starmer face questions from an audience.[149] |
| 13 | ITV holds a debate featuring senior figures from the UK's seven main political parties and moderated by Julie Etchingham.[150] |
| 14 | A coalition of commercial media and content businesses write to Labour to urge them not to introduce advertising on the BBC, fearing it could have a negative impact on consumers, licence fee payers and creative industries.[151] |
| BBC One airs the tribute programme Michael Mosley – The Doctor Who Changed Britain following Mosley's recent death.[152] |
| James Norton appears on the day's edition of CBeebies Bedtime Stories reading How to Manage a Mammoth by Dr Rose Stewart, a children's story that deals with type 1 diabetes.[153] |
| Among those from the world of television to be recognised in the 2024 Birthday Honours are actress Imelda Staunton, who receives a DBE, Countdown lexicographer Susie Dent, who becomes an MBE, and professional dancer Amy Dowden from Strictly Come Dancing, who receives an MBE.[154] |
| 16 | ITV Wales holds an election debate between senior figures from the three main political parties in Wales; David TC Davies (Conservative), Jo Stevens (Labour) and Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru).[155] |
| 18 | Cat Deeley apologises after making a joke about having a seizure on the previous day's edition of This Morning.[156] |
| 19 | The BBC says its presenters are "regularly reminded" of its guidelines relating to clothing after Gary Lineker appeared to breach those rules by wearing an outfit from his own fashion range during England's opening Euro 2024 match against Serbia.[157] |
| 20 | BBC One airs a Question Time election special featuring the leaders of the UK's four main political parties. |
| 21 | BBC Wales airs a televised election debate featuring Vaughan Gething (Labour), Jane Dodds (Liberal Democrat), Rhun ap Iorwerth (Plaid Cymru) and David TC Davies (Conservative).[158] |
| Professional dancer Robin Windsor, who appeared on Strictly Come Dancing, is given a special posthumous award at the 2024 LGBT Awards.[159] |
| 26 | Mishal Husain moderates The Prime Ministerial Debate, the BBC's head-to-head debate between Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer. |
| 27 | The final televised debate of the 2024 general election takes place on BBC One Northern Ireland and features representatives from Northern Ireland's five main parties.[160] |
| 30 | The Box Plus Network's five channels – The Box, Magic, Kiss TV, 4Music and Kerrang! TV – close.[161] The closures come after Channel 4 had announced that they are among the "small linear channels ...[that] no longer deliver[ed] revenues or public value at scale".[162] [163] | |
| Date | Event |
|---|
| 1 | Steve Carson is to step down as Head of Multi-Platform Commissioning at BBC Scotland in September, in order to take up a senior role at Irish broadcaster RTÉ.[164] |
| 2 | Eamonn Holmes is forced to leave his GB News breakfast show half way through the programme due to ill health.[165] |
| 3 | The BBC announces that Tracy-Ann Oberman will be reprising her role of Chrissie Watts in EastEnders for a short time later in the year, 19 years after her departure.[166] |
| 4 | 2024 United Kingdom general election. The BBC's election night coverage is fronted by Laura Kuenssberg and Clive Myrie.[167] ITV's election night coverage is led by Tom Bradby, with Robert Peston, Anushka Asthana and Paul Brand. Sky News's election night programming is presented by Kay Burley, who covers her twelfth general election, and Channel 4's coverage is led by Channel 4 News presenter Krishnan Guru-Murthy and former BBC Newsnight presenter Emily Maitlis.[168] |
| Security guard Gavin Plumb is found guilty of plotting to kidnap, rape and murder television presenter Holly Willoughby.[169] |
| 5 | Following Labour's election victory, Lisa Nandy is appointed as Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, replacing Lucy Frazer.[170] |
| 11 | Channel 4 announces 90% of its 2024 Summer Paralympics team are disabled, with 1,300 hours of live sport across Channel 4, More4 and streaming. Apart from Clare Balding, Vick Hope and Lee McKenzie, the rest are disabled, with Ellie Simmonds, Rose Ayling-Ellis, Lenny Rush, and Fury (Jodie Ounsley) from "Gladiators" making their presenting debuts.[171] |
| A week after his election to Parliament, GB News announces that Nigel Farage is returning to his show on the channel, presenting on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 16 July.[172] |
| 12 | Following his guilty verdict on 4 July, Gavin Plumb is sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum term of 15 years.[173] |
| 13 | Professional dancer Graziano Di Prima confirms he is leaving Strictly Come Dancing.[174] |
| 14 | BBC One and ITV1 both air the UEFA Euro 2024 final, which is watched by an average audience of 17.9m, peaking at 19.3m.[175] |
| 16 | Launch date for UKTV rebranding of its free-to-air channels under the name of "U", for example, Dave becomes "U&Dave" and W becomes "U&W".[176] [177] |
| The BBC says it will put a member of Strictly Come Dancing production staff in all future rehearsals following complaints about the behaviour of two of its professional dancers.[178] |
| 18 | Following the previous day's 2024 State Opening of Parliament, BBC News ends its temporary UK only feed established to cover the general election. |
| A spokesman for Graziano Di Prima confirms he kicked dance partner Zara McDermott during training and was removed from the programme as a result.[179] |
| 19 | Sky News and CBBC are taken off air due to the 2024 CrowdStrike incident.[180] [181] |
| Billie Eilish becomes the latest celebrity to appear on CBeebies Bedtime Stories, reading This Moose Belongs to Me by Oliver Jeffers.[182] |
| 20 | Channel 4 announces the return of Educating Yorkshire, with a new series to air in 2025. |
| 21 | Speaking to The Sun on Sunday, former Strictly contestant Amanda Abbington, who withdrew from the last series in October 2023, alleges dance partner Giovanni Pernice behaved unreasonably towards her, describing it as "unnecessary, abusive, cruel and mean".[183] |
| 22 | Paralympian Will Bayley, who appeared on Strictly Come Dancing in 2019, says that performing a jump routine with dance partner Janette Manrara left him in "horrific pain" and with "injuries that still affect me to this day".[184] |
| It is announced that the BBC News channel's 11pm UK-produced bulletin, which featured during the election campaign, will be made permanent. This means that the news channel will have its first exclusively-produced bulletin for its UK stream since its merger into a global news service last year.[185] |
| 23 | BBC Director-General Tim Davie apologises to contestants on Strictly Come Dancing after complaints about abusive behaviour, which he describes as "unacceptable". Davie also confirms the show will return later in the year.[186] |
| 24 | RTÉ News bulletins are geoblocked in Northern Ireland because of broadcast licencing issues over coverage of the 2024 Summer Olympics.[187] |
| 25 | RTÉ confirms it will resume showing news broadcasts in Northern Ireland, although they will not be live during the Olympics. |
| 26 | BBC One broadcasts the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics, which culminates in a performance of Edith Piaf's "Hymne à l'amour" by Celine Dion at the Eiffel Tower. The ceremony is watched by an average 6.8 million viewers.[188] |
| 27 | Laura Whitmore becomes the latest Strictly contestant to allege she was the victim of inappropriate behaviour during her time on the show.[189] |
| 29 | Former BBC newsreader Huw Edwards is charged with making indecent images of children.[190] |
| Figures reveal that S4C spent more than £500,000 on its investigation into allegations of bullying and toxic culture at the broadcaster.[191] |
| Mimii Ngulube and Josh Oyinsan win the eleventh series of Love Island, and become the first black couple to win the series.[192] [193] |
| 31 | Former BBC newsreader Huw Edwards pleads guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children at a hearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court.[194] |
| Ofcom's annual Media Nations survey is published, revealing that for the first time less than half of 16-to-24-year-olds (48%) are regularly watching traditional television.[195] | |
| Date | Event |
|---|
| 2 | The Doctor Who episode "Fear Her" featuring Huw Edwards is removed from BBC iPlayer after Edwards pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children. The BBC confirms that the episode will be reinstated after Edwards had been re-dubbed.[196] |
| BAFTA announces the creation of a new category for children's and family films, with those rated U, PG or 12A being eligible.[197] |
| 3 | The BBC removes a video promoting Children in Need 2018 from its website after it emerges the video features the suspect in the 2024 Southport stabbing.[198] |
| 4 | The Observer reports that the BBC has started removing content that includes Huw Edwards from its website, beginning with family entertainment programming on BBC iPlayer.[199] |
| 5 | Comedian Chris McCausland is officially announced as the first celebrity contestant for the 22nd series of Strictly Come Dancing, becoming the show's first ever blind contestant in the process.[200] |
| 6 | Ofcom approves planned changes to the BBC Scotland television channel that will see cutbacks to its news, with its hour-long 9pm weekday programme The Nine replaced by a 30 minute programme at 7pm.[201] |
| 7 | Further allegations of abuse emerge against Strictly Come Dancing as a number of junior members of staff allege a toxic culture behind the scenes of the programme.[202] |
| Ofcom have received more than 8,200 complaints about two interviews during the 5 August edition of Good Morning Britain – the first involving presenter Ed Balls who spoke to his wife, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, and the second involving an interview Balls and Kate Garraway did with Labour MP Zarah Sultana.[203] |
| 8 | Sky launches Sky Sports+, its new streaming service for its sports customers. The launch coincides with the start of the 2024/2025 football season.[204] |
| 9 | The BBC asks Huw Edwards to repay over £200,000 that he received from the corporation after being arrested on child abuse image charges in November 2023.[205] |
| Actress, comedian and writer Meera Syal appears on CBeebies Bedtime Stories to read Amma's Sari by Sandhya Parappukaran to mark South Asian Heritage Month.[206] |
| 12 | Viewing data indicates that programming from the 2024 Summer Olympics was streamed 218 million times during the 19 days of sporting events. Overall, 36 million people watched some Olympic content for fifteen minutes or longer, with a peak audience of 6 million on several days.[207] |
| 19 | A new game show succeeding Unbeatable hosted by Jason Manford. The Answer Run debuts on BBC One to replace repeats of The Finish Line. |
| 28 | Channel 4 begins its coverage of the 2024 Summer Paralympics, starting with the opening ceremony.[208] | |
| Date | Name | Age | Broadcast credibility |
|---|
| 4 January | Georgina Hale[223] | 80 | Actress (After the Dance, T-Bag) |
| Glynis Johns[224] | 100 | Actress (Batman, Playhouse, Mary Poppins) |
| David Soul[225] | 80 | Actor (Starsky & Hutch, Here Come the Brides) and singer |
| 11 January | Annie Nightingale[226] | 83 | British DJ and television broadcaster (The Old Grey Whistle Test) |
| 15 January | Charmian Abrahams[227] | 96 | Actress (Crossroads) |
| 16 January | Laurie Johnson[228] | 96 | Theme tune composer (The Avengers, The Professionals, Animal Magic, This Is Your Life) |
| 26 January | Richard Howard[229] | 79 | Actor (Emmerdale Farm) |
| 29 January[230] | Pat Webb[231] | 75 | Reality show participant (Gogglebox) |
| 2 February | Jonnie Irwin[232] | 50 | English television presenter (A Place in the Sun, Escape to the Country, To Buy or Not to Buy) |
| 2 February | Ian Lavender[233] | 77 | English actor (Dad's Army, EastEnders) |
| 5 February | Michael Jayston[234] | 88 | Actor (Doctor Who, Emmerdale, Jane Eyre, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Only Fools and Horses, Midsomer Murders) |
| 12 February | Steve Wright[235] | 69 | Presenter (Top of the Pops, Top of the Pops 2, The Steve Wright People Show) |
| 15 February | Stuart Organ[236] | 72 | Actor (Grange Hill, Doctor Who, Brookside, Holby City, Casualty) |
| 19 February | Ewen MacIntosh[237] | 50 | Actor and comedian (The Office, Little Britain, Miranda) |
| Robin Windsor[238] | 44 | British dancer (Strictly Come Dancing) |
| 21 February | Pamela Salem[239] | 80 | Actress (Buccaneer, Into the Labyrinth, EastEnders, Doctor Who) |
| John Savident[240] | 86 | Actor (Danger Man, The Saint, Callan, Doctor Who, Blake's 7, Yes Minister, Coronation Street) |
| 23 February | Chris Gauthier[241] | 48 | English-born Canadian actor (Earthsea, School of Life, Eureka, Harper's Island, Iron Invader, Once Upon a Time, A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Christmas House, Joe Pickett). He made guest appearances in Smallville, Level Up and Signed, Sealed, Delivered. |
| 27 February | Michael Culver[242] | 85 | English actor (The Empire Strikes Back, A Passage to India, The Adventures of Black Beauty, Cadfael) |
| 28 February | Dave Myers[243] | 66 | Presenter and (one half of The Hairy Bikers) (The Hairy Bikers' Cookbook, The Hairy Bikers' Food Tour of Britain, The Hairy Bikers' Asian Adventure) |
| 3 March | Edward Bond[244] | 89 | British dramatist and theatre director (Saved, Narrow Road to the Deep North, The Sea) |
| 4 March | Tony Green[245] | 85 | British sports commentator and television announcer (Bullseye) |
| 6 March | Vikki Richards[246] | 79 | British actress (Curse of the Crimson Altar, Zeta One, Black Snake) |
| 15 March | Peter Kelly[247] | 82 | Scottish actor (The Tall Guy, Welcome to Sarajevo). |
| 23 March | David Capper[248] | 91 | Northern Irish journalist and television reporter (BBC Ireland correspondent) |
| 24 March | Kay Benbow[249] | 62 | British television executive (CBeebies) |
| 27 March | George Gilbey[250] | 40 | English television personality (Gogglebox) and reality show contestant (Celebrity Big Brother) |
| 30 March | Chance Perdomo[251] | 27 | British actor (Midsomer Murders, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Gen V) |
| 3 April | Adrian Schiller[252] | 60 | English actor (Victoria, The Last Kingdom, Death in Paradise) |
| 8 April | Sir Paul Fox[253] | 98 | Television producer (BBC Television) |
| 14 April | Vincent Friell[254] | 64 | Scottish actor (Taggart, Rab C. Nesbitt, Still Game) |
| 18 April | James Laurenson[255] | 84 | New Zealand-born actor (Coronation Street, The Crown) |
| 28 April | Stephen Grimason[256] | 67 | Northern Irish journalist and editor of BBC News NI |
| Brian McCardie[257] | 59 | Scottish actor (Rob Roy, , Ellie Parker, Line of Duty) and writer |
| 2 May | Peter Oosterhuis[258] | 75 | English golfer and broadcaster (Sky Sports, CBS Sports) |
| 3 May | Dorothy Bromiley[259] | 93 | British actress (The Girls of Pleasure Island, It's Great to Be Young, A Touch of the Sun) |
| 5 May | Bernard Hill[260] | 79 | English actor (The Lord of the Rings, Titanic, Boys from the Blackstuff) |
| 6 May | Ian Gelder[261] | 74 | British actor (Game of Thrones, Torchwood, Little Dorrit) |
| 14 May | Gudrun Ure[262] | 98 | Scottish actress (Super Gran) |
| 2 June | Jeannette Charles[263] | 96 | British actress (Saturday Night Live, Q..., Big Brother) |
| Harold Snoad[264] | 88 | British television producer, writer and director (Keeping Up Appearances, Ever Decreasing Circles, Don't Wait Up, The Dick Emery Show) |
| 3 June | William Russell[265] | 99 | English actor (Doctor Who, Coronation Street, The Adventures of Sir Lancelot) |
| 4 June | Nicholas Ball[266] | 78 | English actor (Hazell, EastEnders, Footballers' Wives) |
| 5 June | Rose-Marie[267] | 68 | Northern Irish singer and television personality |
| Michael Mosley[268] | 67[269] | British television journalist and presenter (The One Show, , The Genius of Invention) |
| 9 June | Simon Cowell[270] | 72 | British television presenter (Wildlife SOS) and conservationist, founder of Wildlife Aid Foundation |
| 26 June | Pat Heywood[271] | 92 | Scottish actress (Lucky Feller, Wuthering Heights, Inspector Morse, Root Into Europe) |
| 4 July | Ysanne Churchman[272] | 99 | English actress (Crossroads, Doctor Who, Softly, Softly) |
| 5 July | Yvonne Furneaux[273] | 98 | French-British actress (Danger Man, Hereward the Wake, The Baron) |
| 6 July | Roberta Taylor[274] | 76 | English actress (EastEnders, The Bill, ) and author |
| 22 July | Beccy Barr[275] | 46 | British journalist, TV presenter and firefighter |
| 28 July | John Anderson[276] | 92 | Scottish television referee (Gladiators) |
| 5 August | Ron Bain[277] | 79 | Scottish actor (Naked Video) |
| 9 August | Brian Marjoribanks[278] | 82 | Scottish footballer (Hibernian), actor and broadcaster (BBC Scotland) |
| 20 August | John Clegg[279] | 90 | British actor (It Ain't Half Hot Mum, Tom & Viv, Shooting Fish). | |
