[all new phil]

The other option for a cleaner exit on the BBC NC is to break away slightly early. When the NC used to leave Breakfast at 8:30 officially, it actually left the programme at about 8:27 when they went to regional news. They then just started the bulletin on the NC slightly early.

If they brought the regional news back to 8:55, the NC could either leave then and cover the extra 5 minutes with weather and trials or take the final regional bulletin from London and then go to the NC at 9:00 at the end of it instead of going back to Salford.

If they did this, it would have the benefit of a clean opt-out point for the NC and also allow for a full 15 minutes after 9 to have an extended interview which would work well - with short BBC One exclusive headlines at 9, they could then go into a daily 10 minute or so interview and then have a few spare minutes to wrap up. It would make far more sense than having to interrupt interviews for opt-outs as they sometimes have to do now.

What you suggest makes sense if you’re looking at from the perspective of what works for the news channel. I’d guess though that the news channel barely even registers as a consideration with the people working on the show. They’re not going to move things around to suit a tiny part of the audience, and I suspect they have good reasons for the timings they stick to.