Entertainment

BBC’s long-running Film Show to be replaced

Film 2018 will be the last of the series, which began in the early 1970s.
Film 2018 will be the last of the series, which began in the early 1970s. Film 2018 will be the last of the series, which began in the early 1970s.

Long-running BBC review programme the Film Show is set to be replaced as the broadcaster looks into a different format for movie criticism.

A new show for cinema news and reviews is being explored by the BBC, as the corporation changes its approach to arts coverage.

Film 2018 will be the final instalment of the show, which first aired in 1971 and made use of a host of presenters.

Barry Norman hosted the show for 26 years, followed by Jonathan Ross for 11, before Claudia Winkleman took over for a six-year stint. 

Since then the insights into the world of cinema have been presented by various famous faces including Zoe Ball and Charlie Brooker.

Virgin TV British Academy Television Awards 2018 – London
Virgin TV British Academy Television Awards 2018 – London Claudia Winkleman presented the show from 2010 to 2016 (Isabel Infantes/PA)

The end of the Film Show was first reported in Radio Times magazine, which announced the planned changes.

The BBC is yet to confirm the nature of any new-look film show.

A spokeswoman for the corporation said: “We are constantly looking at how we present the arts to ensure we are serving all audiences in the best way possible.

“In 2019 we will be creating an enhanced offer for lovers of film both on television and online which will be a more consistent approach across the year and will replace the Film Show.

“We’re still working through the details and will have more news about what this will look like soon.

“Those interested in film can also watch and listen to other film programming across the BBC; from BBC News’s weekly The Film Review and Radio 4’s The Film Programme and film features on Front Row, Radio 3’s Sound Of Cinema, to Mark Kermode’s Secrets Of Cinema on BBC Four – which is back at Christmas, where he will celebrate one of the most perennial of all genres: the Christmas movie.”