GMTV presenters could be cut from show

GMTV presenters could be cut from show (Image credit: Doug Peters/EMPICS Entertainment)

GMTV's presenters are 'anxious beyond belief' according to sources who have revealed plans to give two of them the boot. ITV is reportedly putting together a cost cutting review including plans to get rid of one man and one woman from the GMTV presenting team. Andrew Castle, John Stapleton, Kate Garraway, Ben Shephard and Penny Smith could all be in the firing line. A source told The Mirror: "Everyone is absolutely dreading the results of the review. "There will very likely be some big-name casualties." But another insider told the paper that new girl Emma Crosby’s job is safe: "Emma has been everything we had hoped for and more. "She is a natural in front of the camera and comes from a hard news background which only adds to her appeal. Her pay has recently been increased to £160,000. The source added: "The new deal is a reflection of how highly we value her and want to keep her on the show as well as our viewers who have given her great feedback." However another insider warned that ‘everyone is still at risk’, explaining: "ITV have carte blanche to rip up contracts as they see fit."

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Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix.

An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.