The Queen dies: Gogglebox to air as planned, The Last Leg cancelled

By Neil Wilkes, Editor-in-chief

Published: September 9 2022 | 19:03

Last updated: September 10 2022 | 09:31

The Queen dies: Gogglebox to air as planned, The Last Leg cancelled

Channel 4 confirms that Gogglebox will return for a new series tonight as planned.

Channel 4 has decided to go ahead with tonight's episode of Gogglebox as planned following the death of The Queen yesterday.

The elderly monarch passed away peacefully at her Balmoral home on Thursday afternoon, with broadcasters ripping up their schedules to switch to non-stop news coverage.

Channel 4 was among those to cover the event significantly on Thursday but has begun to reintroduce regular programming today, albeit with some changes to the original schedule.

The new series of Gogglebox will start at 9pm as planned but the episode will run to 45 minutes instead of the usual hour. The contributors are expected to be seen reacting to news events from earlier in the week, including Liz Truss taking over as Prime Minister, but The Queen's death will be addressed in next week's episode.

Meanwhile, tonight's edition of comedy show The Last Leg has been scrapped in favour of reruns of two First Dates episodes.

A C4 spokesperson said: "Channel 4 has made significant changes to our schedule, including added extended news coverage, to ensure that Channel 4 is respectful following the news from Buckingham Palace about the death of Her Majesty The Queen.

"Channel 4 exists to offer viewers an alternative and that is particularly important at times like this. Gogglebox is a much loved national institution and it will air as planned tonight, bringing a valuable sense of continuity for many of our viewers."

Writing on Twitter, The Last Leg host Adam Hills said: "We've decided not to do an episode of @thelastleg tonight. It just doesn't feel right. We'll pay tribute to Her Majesty next week but for now our thoughts are with her family, and all those affected by the news. We hope you understand."

As Channel 4 adjusts back to normal programming, BBC One and ITV are continuing with news coverage into Saturday afternoon.