You’ve Been Framed is cancelled - other long running early evening television shows that have been scrapped

We were as surprised as many other people here at Peopleworld when we heard that the long-running ITV series You’ve Been Framed has finally been given the chop. Primarily because for some of us, we thought the series hosted by Harry Hill had been axed long before this year.

The show, based on the same format as America’s Funniest Home Videos, will not be renewed by the broadcaster after its final episodes have finished airing, becoming another victim of the cut-throat world of early evening light entertainment. That, or people have discovered this streaming service called YouTube - which surprised us, even more, how long the show lasted given the advent of streaming video platforms.

Nonetheless, You’ve Been Framed was always viewed as an integral part of ITV’s Saturday evening lineup, with many a ‘90s child remembering rushing home from a friend’s house for tea and swapping between You’ve Been Framed on ITV over to catch the latest episode of Bugs on BBC One.

Along with Noel’s House Party, You’ve Been Framed became part of the zeitgeist of ‘90s light entertainment that in some cases was betrayed by advances in technology and other cases just aged very poorly. Be that as it may though, many will recall fond memories of a golden age of Saturday evening television - Mr. Blobby included.

PeopleWorld dusted off their old video cassette tapes, popped them into the VCR and hoped someone pressed pause while recording to avoid advert breaks and take a look at some of the other early evening television shows that were popular at the time only to face the dreaded axe of the television programme controller.

Noel’s House Party

A polarising television programme when looked back at, but few can deny that at the apex of his run, Noel’s House Party became must-see television in the ‘90s and became the subject of conversations around offices the following week. Be it the star-studded cameos Noel Edmonds managed to appear on the show, the gotcha nature of NTV, or the excitement of watching a celebrity cram money onto their person for a television viewer to earn some extra cash by virtue of watching the show. Need we also mention the show gave birth to Mr. Blobby?

But the schtick started to wear off, when the cameos started drying up, people started to go out more on a Saturday evening and the thought of stitching a friend up with hidden cameras was akin to an invasion of privacy. Noel’s House Party ended in February 1999 but is still considered one of the best Saturday evening television shows of all time.

Streetmate

One of the first hosting roles for a fresh-faced Davina McCall, Streetmate aired around 6pm on Channel 4 during weekdays, with an omnibus edition created for Channel 4’s youth programming block, T4, during the weekends. The premise was simple - Davina found a good-looking person on the street, then dragged them around to find other good-looking people on the street and hopefully matchmake the two individuals.

Popular for McCall’s always enthusiastic approach to presenting, the original lasted three series on Channel 4 before being cancelled - before the advent of Tinder, might we add - leaving McCall to move on to another popular show on C4; Big Brother and her now famous greeting to the Big Brother house imploring them not to swear as they’re live.

Streetmate did make two comebacks, one with Holly Willoughby presenting on ITV 2 for one season in 2007, followed by another attempt by Channel 4 in 2017 with Gogglebox star Scarlett Moffatt presenting. Both didn’t last as long as the Davina McCall original, however.

Passport to Paradise

Johnny and Denise; two names synonymous with light entertainment after winning the hearts of early morning viewers on The Big Breakfast. After Gabby Logan and Chris Evans helmed the show during its breakout years, Johnny Vaughan and Denise Van Outen’s chemistry made The Big Breakfast must-see television on Channel 4.

However, after Van Outen left the Big Breakfast house and Johnny Vaughan subsequently moved to the BBC in a development deal (which saw Johnny Vaughan Tonight a success and his sitcom ‘Orrible a total flop), the pair were reunited to capture the chemistry that made them household favourites with the Saturday evening game show Passport to Paradise.

It lasted one season - despite the individual talents of both Van Outen and Vaughan, they couldn’t quite capture the same level of fandom as they had previously with the anarchic format of The Big Breakfast. Either it was the muzzling from the sometimes puritanical BBC or just two people having moved on in their careers, but it was another bust for Johnny Vaughan and the show was cancelled that same year in 2004.

Bugs

Another in the golden age of Saturday evening entertainment, Bugs was a starring vehicle for former Neighbours actor Craig McLachlan, who also found a level of fame in the UK with a singing career with a cover of the Bo Diddley song "Mona (I Need You Baby).”

The show came close to being cancelled after its third series, however, a cliffhanger ending followed by a devout, if not somewhat small following demanded to know the fates of their beloved character. BBC commissioned a final series in 1998, which suffered from scheduling problems before disappearing from our screens.

I Can See Your Voice

It has not been a good start to the year for actor-come-presenter Paddy McGuinness; not one but two of his BBC programmes have now been axed as Catchpoint and I Can See Your Voice has not been renewed for future episodes.

Those cancellations have proven to be another issue since Paddy McGuinness signed an exclusive deal with the BBC, with his role as presenter on A Question of Sport getting slammed by critics and older viewers alike as it lacked the humility that previous host Sue Barker brought to the role.