''The Pledge'' is a panel discussion programme broadcast on

Sky News Sky News is a British free-to-air television news channel and organisation. Sky News is distributed via an English-language radio news service, and through online channels. It is owned by Sky Group, a division of Comcast. John Ryley is the hea ...

. There are currently ten panellists, five of whom appear on the show each week. They discuss a variety of topics – there is no presenter, so each panellist champions a topic which is then debated. The programme was first announced in April 2016, and the first episode aired later that month, on 21 April 2016. The show is known for at times being controversial, and debates often get heated. ''The Pledge'' is currently not on air having been suspended in March 2020 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. It is currently unknown when or if the show will return.

Format

Each show comprises five panellists from various professions in the entertainment and journalism industries. Each panellist chooses a subject, then clearly states their argument before passing it to the table. The panellists are then given the chance to challenge the person if they disagree and debate it. Topics discussed cover topical issues in the news such as politics and current affairs.

Broadcasts

''The Pledge'' is pre-recorded on a Thursday in Studio F at

Sky Campus Sky Studios (also known as Sky Campus) is the headquarters of satellite broadcaster Sky, and home to much of their programming output. The Isleworth campus consists of nine buildings plus ancillary structures, with three of those buildings con ...

Osterley Osterley () is an affluent district of the historic parish of Isleworth in west London approximately from Charing Cross and is part of the London Borough of Hounslow. Most of its land use is mixed agricultural and aesthetic parkland at Osterl ...

, and then broadcast on Thursdays at 8pm on Sky News. It is also broadcast on Sundays at 8pm as well as at other times during the week to fill slots.

Current panel

List in alphabetical order. *

Lord Karan Bilimoria Karan Faridoon Bilimoria, Baron Bilimoria, (born 26 November 1961) is a British Indian businessman, life peer in the UK House of Lords, and a university chancellor. Bilimoria founded the global beer brand, Cobra Beer and is the company's chai ...

, entrepreneur and founder of

Cobra Beer Cobra Beer is a beer brand manufactured in the United Kingdom and India. The group's primary product is a premium beer with an alcohol strength of 4.5% by volume (originally 4.8%). The beer was founded in 1989 by Karan Bilimoria and Arjun Reddy. ...

* ‘Big’ Phil Campion, former SAS trooper and author *

Michelle Dewberry Michelle Louise Faye Dewberry (born 9 October 1979) is a British businesswoman, politician, presenter, and media personality. Dewberry won the second series of British television programme ''The Apprentice''. Early life Dewberry was born a ...

, businesswoman and winner of ''

The Apprentice ''The Apprentice'' is a Reality competition, reality talent game show franchise originally aired in 2004 in the United States. Created by U.S.-based British producer Mark Burnett, the show depicts contestants from around the country with variou ...

'' *

Greg Dyke Gregory Dyke (born 20 May 1947) is a British media executive, football administrator, journalist, and broadcaster. Since the 1960s, Dyke has had a long career in the UK in print and then broadcast journalism. He is credited with introducing ' ...

, former TV executive and FA chairman *

Nick Ferrari Nicolo Ferrari (born 31 January 1959) is a British host, television presenter and broadcast journalist. He is best known as the host of the weekday breakfast show on the London-based radio station LBC, with 1.5 million weekly listeners. He al ...

, radio talk show host on ''

LBC LBC (originally the London Broadcasting Company) is a British phone-in and talk radio station owned and operated by Global and based in its headquarters in London. It was the UK's first licensed commercial radio station, and began to broadcast ...

'' *

Afua Hirsch Afua Hirsch (born 1981) is a British writer and broadcaster. She has worked as a journalist for ''The Guardian'' newspaper, and was the Social Affairs and Education Editor for Sky News from 2014 until 2017. Early life Afua Hirsch was born in ...

, writer and journalist (former Social Affairs and Education Editor at Sky News) *

Rachel Johnson Rachel Sabiha Johnson (born 3 September 1965) is a British journalist, television presenter, and author who has appeared frequently on political discussion panels, including '' The Pledge'' on Sky News and BBC One's debate programme, ''Questi ...

, novelist and journalist *

Carole Malone Carole Anne Malone (born 14 October 1954) is an English TV presenter, journalist and broadcaster. Career Malone was born on 14 October 1954 in the mining village of West Allotment, near Newcastle upon Tyne. She started her career as a journalis ...

, TV presenter, broadcaster and journalist *

Maajid Nawaz Maajid Usman Nawaz (; born 2 November 1977) is a British activist and former radio presenter. He was the founding chairman of Quilliam. Until January 2022, he was the host of an LBC radio show on Saturdays and Sundays. Born in Southend-on-Sea ...

, columnist, broadcaster and politician *

Femi Oluwole Femi Oluwole (born 17 March 1990) is a British political activist and co-founder of the pro-European Union advocacy group Our Future Our Choice (OFOC). He has appeared as an activist and commentator on British television. He has written for ''T ...

, political campaigner *

Trevor Phillips Sir Mark Trevor Phillips (born 31 December 1953) is a British writer, broadcaster and former politician who served as Chair of the London Assembly from 2000 to 2001 and from 2002 to 2003. He presented '' Trevor Phillips on Sunday'', a Sunday ...

, broadcaster and writer *

June Sarpong June Konadu Sarpong (born 31 May 1977) is a British television presenter and executive. She was a panellist on ITV's ''Loose Women'' and is currently a panellist on the Sky News programme '' The Pledge''. In November 2019, Sarpong was appointed ...

, TV presenter and pro-EU campaigner *

Rachel Shabi Rachel () was a Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob's two wives, and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel. Rachel's father was Laban. Her older sister was Leah, Jacob's first wife. Her aunt ...

, journalist

Original panel

List in alphabetical order. *

Emma Barnett Emma Barnett (born 5 February 1985) is a British broadcaster and journalist. She has been the main presenter of ''Woman's Hour'' on BBC Radio 4 since January 2021. Barnett worked for BBC Radio 5 Live for six years, beginning in 2014, after th ...

, broadcaster and journalist *

James Caan James Edmund Caan ( ; March 26, 1940 – July 6, 2022) was an American actor. He came to prominence playing Sonny Corleone in ''The Godfather'' (1972) – a performance which earned him Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, Academy Award an ...

, entrepreneur and former '' Dragons’ Den'' investor *

, journalist *

Graeme Le Saux Graeme Pierre Le Saux ( ; born 17 October 1968) is an English former professional footballer and television pundit. As a versatile left sided player he played most of his career at left back with two spells at Chelsea, Blackburn Rovers, Southamp ...

, former Chelsea and England footballer * Baroness Mone, Baroness of Mayfair and entrepreneur *

Transmissions

Series

References

External links

Sky NewsThe Pledge (Facebook)The Pledge (Twitter)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pledge, The 2016 British television series debuts 2020s British television series Sky News Sky UK original programming English-language television shows Sky television news shows