FOR more than a decade and a half, they were the much-loved couple we welcomed into our living rooms every night.

But after a radical cost cutting shake-up of ITV’s local news, Hampshire residents tuning into Meridian Tonight have been left upset and angry at the loss of a familiar and friendly face.

Iconic presenter and Daily Echo columnist Fred Dinenage is still on the sofa, but his onscreen partner of 16 years, Debbie Thrower, has gone.

Even the backdrop, most recently Portsmouth’s Spinnaker Tower, has been replaced by a bridge in Oxford.

The station, which used to broadcast from the Northam studios in the heart of Southampton, has been deluged with complaints about the changes.

With three shows merged into one as part of changes prompted by plummeting advertising revenue, Debbie is one of nearly 100 newsroom staff who have lost their jobs.

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The loss of a familiar face has angered many viewers, as has the new “local” region.

With Meridian South, Meridian South East, and ITV Thames Valley all combined, the show now covers an area stretching 200 miles from Weymouth to Margate, and as far north as Banbury.

Bosses at the Whiteley-based station say 18 minutes of each half-hour show, presented by Fred and new colleague Sangeeta Bhabra, are dedicated to smaller areas.

The region splits in two, but that still leaves news from Hampshire competing for airspace with reports from Dorset, Wiltshire, Sussex, Surrey, Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckingham-shire.

According to Meridian, the new region is “the biggest outside of London – with a population of eight million people, 12 county councils, 86 MPs, 60 district councils, seven international airports and a tunnel to France”.

Viewers have been quick to express their anger at the changes, with complaints flooding into Meridian’s Whiteley headquarters.

Val and Dennis Dowling are among the many vowing to switch off.

“We are both very disappointed with the changes and miss Debbie – her and Fred were a great team,”

they said.

Fellow viewer Val Lloyd added: “You have a nerve calling it local news now.

Local news means within a 30/40 mile radius, not 200, and the same with the weather forecast.”

ITV was unavailable for comment, but Meridian’s head of news Robin Britton said in a statement that he welcomed all comments.

“ITV is a commercial concern and not insulated from the harsh economic climate by guaranteed licence fee revenue,” he said.

“The new Meridian West region now mirrors BBC South for much of its output.”