This is a list of events that took place in 2009 related to British television.
Events
January Date Event1 January Jonathan Creek returns with a special episode, the first episode of the series since 2004."The Morning After", an episode of The Bill, airs on ITV1. It is a sequel to the series 20 episode "Dawn Morning Light".The Krypton Factor returns to ITV after a 14-year hiatus. Ben Shephard is chosen as the new host taking over from Gordon Burns who has originally hosted from 1977 to 1995 although the 1995 edition was co-hosted by Penny Smith.2 JanuaryBBC 2W closes as part of plans to achieve 3% savings at BBC Cymru Wales. Consequently, the digital version becomes a simulcast of BBC Two on analogue with fewer Wales opt-outs.Celebrity Big Brother returns to Channel 4 for the first time since 2007, following the racism controversy that dominated that year's show. Participants include La Toya Jackson, Verne Troyer and Ulrika Jonsson.3 JanuaryThe BBC announce that 26-year-old Matt Smith is to replace David Tennant as The Doctor in sci-fi drama Doctor Who. Smith, who will take over in 2010, will be the youngest ever actor to play the title role. 12 January Jeff Stelling and Rachel Riley host Countdown for the first time.14 JanuaryLaunch of the BBC's Persian language news channel.20 JanuaryBBC One airs live coverage of the inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States. 22 January The Disasters Emergency Committee launches its Gaza Crisis Appeal following the recent conflict in the region. The BBC causes controversy by saying it will not be broadcasting the appeal as it would compromise its impartiality. Sky News join the BBC in deciding not to air the appeal, but it is screened by ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 on 26 January.23 January Friday Night with Jonathan Ross returns after host Jonathan Ross finishes his 12-week suspension following his role in The Russell Brand Show prank telephone calls row.Ulrika Jonsson wins the sixth series of Celebrity Big Brother. 26 January UKTV Documentary is rebranded as "Eden".27 JanuaryITV confirms that five cast and crew from Heartbeat were injured in a tractor accident while filming on location in Grosmont, North Yorkshire.31 JanuarySinger Jade Ewen is selected as the United Kingdom's entrant to the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest in the final episode of the BBC's selection programme Eurovision: Your Country Needs You. Ewen will sing 'It's My Time', by Andrew Lloyd Webber, a song written specially for the contest.
February Date Event 2 February A day of extreme snow in parts of Britain, the biggest in 18 years, causes many TV programmes to broadcast with limited presenters and live audience shortages as people are unable to reach the studios. In ratings terms, news coverage gets very high ratings with over seven million watching BBC News programmes.4 FebruaryCarol Thatcher is axed from The One Show after she referred to a tennis player as a "golliwog" during a backstage conversation while filming for the programme.A technical playout error during ITV1's coverage of the FA Cup Fourth Round replay between Everton and Liverpool results in coverage of the match being interrupted by an advertisement break towards the end of extra time, causing viewers to miss seeing Everton's winning goal as the feed is restored straight afterwards. ITV subsequently apologises for the error. 5 FebruaryTo coincide with the 20th anniversary of Sky's launch, at 6am Sunrise begins presenting from a new "multi-purpose" area of the Sky News Centre, formally known as the "shoebox". 7 February BBC Two screens the first part of Iran and the West, a landmark three-part documentary marking the 30th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution. 9 February ITV plc merges the ITV Thames Valley and ITV Meridian regions.10 FebruaryGeorge McGhee announces he is stepping down as BBC Controller of Programme Acquisition after six years, and will take a career break. His role will be temporarily filled by Sue Deeks, the current Programme Acquisition Head of Series.ITV airs an hour-long episode of Emmerdale showing the funeral of long-standing character Jack Sugden, who was killed off-screen due to the death of Clive Hornby, the actor who played him, the year before. The episode sees Sheila Mercier reprise her role as Jack's mother, Annie Sugden, who returns to the village of Emmerdale to attend his funeral, while the episode is dedicated to Hornby's memory. 12 February ITV plc merges the ITV Anglia regions. 16 February Five US is rebranded as Five USA. Also on this day, ITV plc merges the ITV West and ITV Westcountry regions. 17 February UKTV People is rebranded as "Blighty". 19 February ITV plc merges the ITV Yorkshire regions.23 February ITV plc merges the ITV Central regions. Sky is criticised by Ofcom for allowing Domino's Pizza to sponsor The Simpsons because the deal breached the watchdog's rules banning the advertising of junk food while children's programmes are on air.Corpus Christi College, Oxford wins the 2008–09 series of University Challenge, beating the University of Manchester 275–190. Corpis Christi are later disqualified after one of their team members is found to have no longer been a student, and the title awarded to Manchester.24 FebruaryAn episode of EastEnders is screened consisting entirely of black actors, the first time an episode of the soap has featured an entirely black cast in its 23-year history. 25 February ITV plc merges the ITV Border and ITV Tyne Tees regions.26 FebruaryMat Follas wins the 2009 series of MasterChef.FebruaryITV makes major cutbacks to its regional broadcasts in England. The separate sub-regional news programmes are merged into a pan-regional programme although more localised news continues to be broadcast as a brief opt-out during the early evening programme, and with the exception of a monthly political programme, all non-news regional programming in the English regions ends.FebruaryUTV's mid-morning weekday and lunchtime weekend UTV Live bulletins are axed when the station is permitted to reduce their weekly news output from five hours and twenty minutes to four hours."UTV Life may face axe" Belfast Telegraph, 8 October 2008; accessed 18 January 2009
March Date Event2 March UKTV History is rebranded as "Yesterday". Corpus Christi College, Oxford are disqualified as champions of the 2009 series of University Challenge after one of their contestants, Sam Kay, was found to no longer be a student. The runners-up, the University of Manchester, are declared champions in their place. ITV announces it is cutting 600 jobs after it reported a loss of £2.6 billion for 2008. The jobs will go from the company's Yorkshire studios in Leeds and from their headquarters in London.Emmerdale announces the introduction of British soap's first regular blind character. Kitty McGeever will make her debut as wayward character Lizzie Lakely next month. 9 March From this week, ITV's News at Ten programme returns to being aired five nights a week (having previously aired Monday to Thursday only since its return, with an 11 pm bulletin on Fridays). 13 March Highlights of Comic Relief 2009 include a spoof of Mamma Mia, and a re-imagining of The Office as an opera. The telethon raises a record total in excess of £57 million at the climax of their telethon, surpassing the amount raised during the 2007 telethon by over £17 million. 16 March Missing was broadcast as the first British Daytime serial on the BBC since Doctors since 2000. 22 March Ray Quinn and dance partner Maria Filippov win the fourth series of Dancing on Ice.23 MarchSTV relaunches its on-screen presentation.Scotland Today is relaunched as STV News at Six. 25 March ITV announces that it will postpone the broadcast of the 2009 National Television Awards until January 2010, and will axe the National Movie Awards. Fern Britton announces she is to quit This Morning after 10 years.
April Date Event 1 April Six TV is defunct in Oxfordshire and Southampton after only 10 years of localised airing. Trouble closes down after over 12 years of broadcasting and is replaced by Living +2.Channel 4 airs the 1,000th edition of Deal or No Deal. 3 April The BBC is fined £150,000 because of The Russell Brand Show prank telephone calls row. It is the biggest financial penalty ever imposed on the corporation for a single broadcast.4 AprilThe BBC receives 1,477 complaints following a remark made by sports presenter Clare Balding to the winning jockey at the 2009 Grand National. Referring to Liam Treadwell's teeth she suggested that he could "get them done" with his prize fund. Balding and the BBC later issued an apology. 5 April BBC One moves its Countryfile programme to a 7 pm slot on Sunday evenings. The Sunday morning slot previously occupied by the show is taken over by a new outdoors activity show called Country Tracks. 6 April Paramount Comedy 1 and Paramount Comedy 2 are rebranded to Comedy Central and Comedy Central Extra.7 April BBC Two suffers its second worse peaktime viewing audience since 2001, with a share of 5.3%.The BBC confirms that Danniella Westbrook will return to EastEnders as Sam Mitchell later in the year.8 AprilThe BBC apologises after a link was accidentally posted on The Apprentice website revealing the identity of the candidate who would be fired in the evening's edition of the show. 8 April – 9 September Analogue services are switched off in the Westcountry region. 10 April Channel 5 broadcasts Australian live action children's series Hi-5 on their Milkshake! block for the final time after 6 years due to losing rights and constant presenter changes. 10–12 April To celebrate its 21st birthday, three new episodes of the sci-fi sitcom Red Dwarf are broadcast on Dave. Entitled Red Dwarf: Back to Earth, they are the first new episodes of the show since 1999. 11 April Unemployed 47 year old Susan Boyle makes her Britain's Got Talent audition, performing "I Dreamed A Dream" out of the blue; her audition gains many YouTube views overnight. 23 April ITV chief executive Michael Grade announces he will step down by the end of 2009 and will become non-executive chairman. 25 April Simon Amstell announces that he is to quit as host of Never Mind the Buzzcocks after acting as host since 2006. 27 April UTV launches a 30-minute late evening news and current affairs programme, UTV Live Tonight, which follows the News at Ten on weekday nights from Monday to Thursday. The programme incorporates the station's late news bulletin alongside extended political and business coverage. 30 April UKTV Style is rebranded as "Home".
May