ITV Westcountry - Programmes

Programmes

Westcountry's programme offerings were primarily aimed at a regional market as opposed to gaining network slots. Westcountry's regional programming concentrates on the regional news programme Westcountry Live, which ran between Westcountry's launch in 1993 until the merger in 2009. Other regional programmes included:

• Westcountry Update - Weekly news review for the deaf and hard of hearing (1993–2004)
• Westcountry Focus - Westcountry's first regular current affairs series
• Westcountry Life - Short 30-second films reflecting aspects of life in the region (1993–96)
• West Wise - Short-lived inter-town quiz, one of Westcountry's first local programmes (1993)
• Brief Encounters - Feature series about unusual past times (1993–94)
• On the Road to the Islands - Jack Pizzey's tour of islands in the South West, later aired by Channel 4 (1993)
• Little River Journeys - A look at the Westcountry region's waterways, later aired by Channel 4 (1995)
• Richard Digance: For One Night Only - Local entertainment series (1997-8)
• Bendell at Bedtime - Topical debate (2004)
• Birthday People - Birthday slot for children (1993-2005)
• Westcountry Soccer Night - Local football magazine show (2004-8)
• Special Report - current affairs programme

In their annual reports, the Independent Television Commission (ITC) commented on Westcountry's programming and performance; in 1995 they stated that Westcountry had a "good news service and regional programming", despite a difficult first year. Two years later in 1997 the ITC again noted their "strong, high quality regional programming" and that they had "scored a major network success with Christmas with the Royal Navy, a series of five live programmes". In 1999 the ITC again commented that Westcountry provided a "regional service of generally high quality" and that overall their range of regional programmes was "wide and included some strong factual material", also noting that one of their children's programmes had been supplied to the network.