News at Ten return sparks battle

Sir Trevor (r) said he was delighted to be back in the 2200 slot

ITV and BBC's main news bulletins are going head-to-head with the return of News at Ten later.

The revamped ITV bulletin will still feature the famous "bongs", with the "and finally" story making a return.

Veteran presenter Sir Trevor McDonald will be joined by Julie Etchingham, who comes to ITV News from Sky News.

The revived programme will be broadcast from Monday to Thursday, with the Friday newscast - The Late News - scheduled to go on air at 2300.

Shifted soaps

Sir Trevor, who last presented ITV's evening news bulletin in 2005, said he was "delighted to be back" as lead newscaster.

THE EDITORS' BLOG Putting the two bulletins head to head will keep all of us on our toes Peter Horrocks, Head of BBC Newsroom Peter's comments in full

News at Ten was first dropped in 1999 after nearly 32 years on air, to make room for films to be aired in prime time. The BBC capitalised on the move by shifting its main news to 2200 a year later.

It returned again for three years from 2001, after which ITV settled on 2230 as the time for its main news bulletin.

News at Ten's latest revival is part of a schedule revamp which has shifted soap operas Emmerdale and Coronation Street out of their Sunday night slots.

Weekends are being given over to more drama and entertainment, including the new series of Dancing On Ice which began on Sunday evening.

Other new ITV1 programmes include quiz show Duel and improvisation show Thank God You're Here, featuring comic Paul Merton.