BBC announces major schedule change for Newsnight following show's refresh

The BBC has announced a major schedule change for its flagship current affairs programme Newsnight, with the long-running series set to be given a primetime slot on one night of the week.

The show currently airs at 10.30pm every weekday on BBC Two, with episodes running for 30 minutes. This will mostly remain unchanged, though Fridays instalment will air at the earlier time of 7pm from this week (18 September) onwards.

"Newsnight is thriving, and moving to a peak-time Friday slot gives us a brilliant opportunity to unpack the week's biggest stories before the weekend kicks in," said presenter Matt Chorley, who hosts the Friday night episode.

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"Politics has never been more complicated or contested, so every Friday night I'll bring viewers the perfect primer for what is really going on, with the best interviews and analysis that Newsnight viewers expect."

"And because it's Friday night, we'll have some fun along the way and hopefully a few surprises too," added the host, who is one of three presenters for the series alongside Victoria Derbyshire and Paddy O'Connell.

Jonathan Aspinwall, Executive Editor for the series, said in a statement: "Newsnight has long been known for its forensic interviews and sharp insights, helping audiences make sense of the biggest stories shaping our world.

"As more and more people discover Newsnight across the BBC's platforms, they can expect even more news-making guests, fresh and exciting voices, and the conversations everyone will be talking about over the weekend."

In its current format, Derbyshire presents the series on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, with O'Connell handling Thursdays. Chorley, who also has a radio show on BBC Radio 5 Live, joined the programme last year.

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The programme has been running on the BBC since 1980, with the series being revamped in 2024. Each episode originally ran for 45 minutes, though the running time was cut by a third following the changes.

Since then, the BBC has said that the programme has "continued to grow its audience", with average viewing numbers up 22% compared to its pre-refresh era. Furthermore, there's been a marked increase in viewership on streaming service BBC iPlayer.

Newsnight airs at 10.30pm from Monday to Thursday, and at 7pm on Fridays.

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Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media.  His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.