Current Affairs
What we do
Current Affairs on ITV cover a broad range of issues and include many differing styles and sub-genres within in the widest sense we're interested in the stories and ideas that graphically illustrate what is going on 'out there' - among our audience. That includes the social, the political and the economic but it is fundamentally about the way we live our lives and the issues and challenges that face us in the everyday world.Most important of all we look for stories, strong narratives based firmly around people at the heart of events. Access can be an important element in any coverage but it has to be access with a point, access that drives a narrative and tells a powerful tale.Most of our commissions are firmly rooted in UK-based stories but we have commissioned and will continue to commission overseas stories remembering all the time that this is ITV and whatever we do has to resonate with and be relevant to our audience.
Current commissions
Four series sit at the heart of ITV's current affairs schedule.
The weekly Tonight is Britain's most-watched current affairs programme and leads with an agenda of domestic stories and issues, the things that count most of all to our audience. We take a small number of independent half-hour films outside of our core providers ITV Studios and ITV News
Exposure is the investigative strand which ran the RTS award-winning The Other Side of Jimmy Savile as well as, more recently, the BAFTA winners: Undercover: Inside China's Digital Gulag; Fearless: The Women Fighting Putin, America's War on Abortion and The Missing Children.
Running around 7 one-off episodes a year, we're looking for investigative and high impact hour-long documentaries both domestic and international.
Peston, the agenda-setting weekly political talk show hosted by Robert Peston and made by ITV Studios.
The high-rating, popular strand The Martin Lewis Money Show and its Live Specials, also made by ITV Studios, complete the four.
Range is one of the keys to ITV's current affairs. So, this core schedule is supported by returning series such as the Cold Case Forensics, Code Blue and Unbelievable Moments Caught on Camera
Throughout the year there will also be a number of single films and short series at 9pm . These could be tied to significant events, exclusive interviews, fast-turnaround reactive pieces or long-planned 'event' shows. They include RTS award-winning titles like 9/11: Life Under Attack and The Aberfan Young Wives' Club as well as Worlds Collide: The Manchester Bombing; Secrets of the Bay City Rollers, Lord Lucan: My Husband, The Truth; and Tabloids on Trial.
We commission throughout the year and are always particularly interested in stand-out ideas for Exposure and ideas that have the strength to make it into short, possibly two-part, current affairs series.
How to submit an idea
We are very open to offers and suggestions and while always excited by ideas that have real form and clarity we are also happy to work with you on the germ of an idea that has promise. We will, above all, give you the quickest feedback we can and can be contacted on CurrentAffairs.Commissioning@ITV.com or email tom.giles@itv.com
Please note we only accept submissions from production companies.
Key People
Commissioning areas
Entertainment & Daytime
Factual
Drama & Comedy
Sport
Digital Channels
Online