Granada Reports

ITV News Granada Reports is the regional news programme for the ITV Granada region. It serves the North West of England (including southern parts of Cumbria, the western area of the High Peak district of Derbyshire) and the Isle of Man.

Overview
Granada Reports is produced and broadcast from ITV Granada studios in Quay Street, Manchester with reporters also based at newsrooms in the Royal Liver Building, Liverpool, Lancaster and on the Isle of Man. Reporters were also based at newsrooms in Blackburn and Chester until both offices were closed in 2005.

Prior to its launch in 1973, the nightly news programme had been known under several titles such as Northern Newscast, Scene at Six Thirty and People and Places. The Granada Reports brand was originally scrapped in 1990 and replaced by Granada Tonight before the former name was revived on 1 October 2001.

The programme was unaffected with cutbacks to ITV regional news in early 2009. The only major change saw ITV Granada take over coverage of the Isle of Man from ITV Tyne Tees & Border on 16 July 2009.

On 27 September 2012 it was announced technical staff had been invited to volunteer for redundancy; this as part of the production moving from Granada Studios to MediaCityUK. Granada Reports begun broadcasting from the new studios on 24 March 2013.

Broadcast times
ITV News Granada Reports airs on ITV Granada seven days a week.

On weekdays, three two-minute updates air during Daybreak at 6:07, 7:07 and 8:07. Two six minute bulletins are broadcast at 1:55pm (after the ITV News at 1:30) and at 10:30pm (following the ITV News at Ten). Ten-minute weekend editions are broadcast on Saturday afternoons and Sunday evenings, although times may vary.

Current on air team
N.B. Persons marked with an asterisk are also a stand-in presenter/newsreader.

Presenters

 * News presenters
 * Keri Eldridge – Newsreader
 * Lucy Meacock – Main presenter/newsreader
 * Tony Morris – Main presenter/newsreader


 * Weather presenters
 * Jo Blythe
 * Kerrie Gosney (freelance contract)
 * Emma Jesson (freelance contract)

Correspondents

 * News Correspondents
 * Mel Barham *
 * Ralph Blunsom (freelance contract)
 * Andy Bonner (freelance contract) *
 * Ashley Derricott
 * Paul Duckworth
 * Gregg Easteal
 * Victoria Grimes
 * Catherine Jacob (freelance contract) *
 * Ann O'Connor *
 * Matt O'Donoghue
 * Adam McClean
 * Sarah Rogers *
 * Ben Schofield
 * Rachel Townsend *
 * Tim Scott
 * Rob Smith *
 * Amy Welch *
 * Elaine Willcox *


 * Specialist Correspondents
 * David Chisnall – Sport
 * Paul Crone – Features
 * Chris Hall – Sport
 * Mike Hall – Sport
 * Daniel Hewitt – Political
 * Caroline Whitmore – Entertainment

Former on air team

 * Claire Ashforth
 * Rachel Bullock (ITV News Tyne Tees)
 * Tessa Chapman (5 News)
 * James Cooper (Sky Sports News)
 * Stephen Douglas
 * Gamal Fahnbulleh (Sky News)
 * Clare Fallon (Sky News)
 * Kate Hall (née Giffard)
 * Andy Gill (BBC North West Tonight)
 * Bob Greaves (deceased)
 * Stuart Hall
 * Debbie Lindley (The Pulse)
 * Richard Madeley
 * Judy Finnigan
 * Gordon Burns (BBC Radio)


 * Andrew Lindsay (BBC Sport)
 * Michelle May
 * Rob McLoughlin (Party People for ITV Granada)
 * Jon Mitchell (ITV News Calendar)
 * Emma Murphy (ITV News)
 * Mark Owen (France 24)
 * So Rahman (Al Jazeera International)
 * Patrick Snell
 * Fred Talbot
 * Mark Tattersall
 * Dan Walker (BBC Sport)
 * Antony Wilson (deceased)



Awards
In 2007, Granada Reports won the Royal Television Society awards for best news coverage in the Nations and Regions. This was followed by the Best News Programme at the 2007 Broadcast Awards and finally, Best News Coverage in the 2007 BAFTA Television Awards - the first regional news programme to be nominated and the only regional news programme to ever win a BAFTA. All three awards were won for their coverage of the trial of four men and one woman, charged with manslaughter during the 2004 Morecambe Bay cockling disaster. Judges described the coverage as bold, brave and a tribute to regional news at its best.

Granada Reports retained the National RTS Nations and Regions News Award in 2008 for coverage of the end of the Lesley Molseed murder trial.

Granada Reports won the RTS North West award for Best Regional News Programme in 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2011 for coverage of severe weather, the 20th anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster, Blackpool FC's promotion to the Premier League and an investigation into convicted paedophile Colin Blanchard. Other RTS awards won by the programme in recent years have included the Best North West Regional Story in 2010 for a special report from Afghanistan and in 2011 also for the Colin Blanchard story. Best Regional On Screen Talent for news correspondent went to Rob Smith in 2011.

Granada Reports had its most successful ever North West RTS Awards in 2012 winning an unrivalled four categories including Best Regional News Programme for an unprecedented 4th successive year for coverage of the summer riots in Manchester, Salford and Liverpool. Clare Fallon won Best Regional On Screen Talent, Granada Reports won Best Innovation in Multimedia for Twitter coverage of the riots and Granada also won Best Regional Story for a 3rd successive year for the story of Ann Williams campaign for justice over her son's death at Hillsborough.