Will filming for Britain's Got Talent be affected due to coronavirus?
There are going to be some changes to the show's format...
Britain's Got Talent will return to our TV screens this spring for a fourteenth series, after live auditions started back in January.
The first episode will air on Saturday April 11 from 8pm, ITV confirmed today (April 1st).
As COVID-19 pandemic continues, the show has become one of the latest series to be affected, with the live shows now postponed.
Last week, ITV released a statement saying the live shows would now be filmed later this year as opposed to this summer.
"The Britain's Got Talent audition shows will broadcast on ITV in the next few weeks," an ITV spokesperson said.
"We have been working with the brilliant production teams at Thames and Syco to find a way of making the live finals work, which were due to be broadcast at the end of May."
They continued: "However, in light of the latest government health guidelines and in line with our priority of safeguarding the well-being of everyone involved in our programmes, production of the live shows cannot go ahead as planned.
“The live finals will therefore be broadcast later in the year."
It comes after the network revealed they'd be going ahead with the live auditions, which were filmed in January and February.
"Britain’s Got Talent audition shows are due to be broadcast in the next few weeks as planned," ITV's CEO Carolyn McCall revealed, before adding that they were trying to see how they could make the live shows work in the ever changing situation.
Usually, footage from BGT's live auditions are taken months in advance from different venues around the UK.
This is then edited into a series of episodes which air in the Spring, consisting of montages of scenes from auditions, interviews with some of the notable participants, and recorded backstage scenes of hosts Ant and Dec overseeing the performances from the wings.
After this, the judges then make their decision on who they want to take through to the semi-finals, where contestants must perform before the audience and judges, as well as on live television.
We suspected the live shows could be put on hold, as the network has had to make major changes to their schedule in recent weeks due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The finale for Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway was recently cancelled, as it was due to take place in Disneyland Florida.
Ant and Dec then filmed their Saturday night entertainment show without a studio audience for the first time in the show's history, and will now pre-record episodes.
Similarly, the live shows for The Voice were postponed to later this year
Britain's Got Talent will return to ITV on April 11 at 8pm. If you're looking for more to watch check out our TV guide.
