Who Is Jo Blythe? The ITV Weather Presenter Beyond the Forecast
If you recognise Jo Blythe from the weather map but can’t quite place the programme, there’s a good reason. She presents forecasts for both ITV News Granada and ITV National News. Her work ranges from explaining why a sunny May afternoon feels like winter to taking North West viewers out onto the moors near Bolton. ITV News
There’s also a place you might spot her without a map in sight. In October 2026, Blythe appeared at the opening of a clothes shop in Clitheroe. For anyone who knows her chiefly as the woman who tells them whether to take a coat, the reason she was there opens a window onto another part of her life.
How Jo Blythe became a familiar face on ITV Weather
Blythe began presenting the weather for ITV in 2001. An item in Granada’s archive captures the kind of broadcast on which that career was built. Shortly after six on a Friday evening in October 2013, she was giving North West viewers the outlook for the weekend. The listing is all of two lines long. For someone deciding whether Saturday was the day to get outdoors, it was exactly the bulletin they wanted.
The word Granada helps place her. It’s the ITV news region whose weather coverage takes in North West England and the Isle of Man. Blythe’s national appearances give her a different brief. On one broadcast the question might be when rain will reach Manchester. On another she has to explain how Scotland can face snow while parts of England are heading for a much milder afternoon. ITV called on her to explain precisely that contrast in February 2025.
What she says about the job
In March 2024, Blythe was a guest on the fashion podcast Stressed But Well Dressed. The episode is listed under Joanna Blythe and has the rather apt title Fashion Forecast. She described weather presenting as work she had wanted to do from the outset. ITV’s own short biography calls it her dream job.
The podcast makes room for things a bulletin never could. Blythe talks about dressing for television, how her style has changed over the years and some of the outfits she remembers. The conversation also gets into how the weather map works. If you’ve ever wondered what occupies a presenter’s mind before the camera rolls, this half-hour interview is a more personal introduction than a reel of forecasts.
Three forecasts that show how she tells a weather story
One of Blythe’s most accessible pieces starts with a small puzzle. In May 2026, the sun was out across parts of the UK, yet it still felt cold enough for a winter coat. In her ITV News article, she traced the chill back to air arriving from the Arctic. She also singled out the North Sea coast, where the effect had been particularly noticeable.
Then she changed the question. What would happen after dark? For someone looking at a tray of young plants, the overnight temperature mattered more than the afternoon sunshine. Blythe drew attention to the possibility of frost in rural areas under clear skies. In a few paragraphs she had followed the weather from the air moving across Britain to what might happen in one back garden.
Her February 2025 forecast tells the reverse story. A spell of cold continental air was giving way to milder air from the Atlantic. Some places could expect temperatures in the mid-teens later in the week, even as parts of Scotland faced a warning for snow and ice. The important words for viewers were where and when. Both forecasts could be right, even though either would have made a misleading headline on its own.
For a lighter example, there’s her Valentine’s Day outlook from February 2026. Writing after weeks of wet weather, Blythe picked out a brighter Saturday for people hoping to spend the day outside. She also explained that rain was due to move in from the west that night. A couple making plans could take two quite different cues from the same piece, depending on whether they fancied a lunchtime walk or an evening out.
The autumn assignment that took her to Smithills
In November 2017, Granada sent its weather presenters out to explore the region. Blythe’s destination was Smithills Estate near Bolton. The brief was to introduce viewers to the views and wildlife of a place the programme thought many of them had never visited. For once, the audience could see the landscape that usually sits underneath a weather graphic.
Smithills has an unexpected connection to her day job. The Winter Hill television mast stands above a landscape of moorland, fields and wooded ravines. The Woodland Trust describes views across Bolton towards Manchester. In the studio, those places fit neatly together on a map. At Smithills, you can look across the distance between them.
Why Jo Blythe supports a Lancashire fashion charity
The Clitheroe shop belongs to Labels for CARES, which raises money for diagnostic equipment for local NHS services. Blythe has spoken publicly about the appeal of knowing exactly where the money goes. When the charity announced her patronage, she pointed to the way it purchased equipment that the local health service had identified as a priority.
One such purchase came into view in September 2024. East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust recorded that Blythe, attending as the charity’s ambassador, joined an event marking the handover of endoscopy equipment worth £250,000. The trust also credited the clinical team who helped select the equipment and would go on to use it.
Two years later, the Burnley Express pictured her at the opening of the charity’s second high-street shop. The connection between a rail of designer clothes in Clitheroe and a hospital endoscopy unit might escape a passer-by. Blythe’s appearances at both ends of that fundraising effort help explain it.
Where to watch her forecasts or hear her interview
- For the latest local outlook, open ITV News Granada’s weather section and select Your Granada Weather Forecast. The page covers the region, and the presenter can vary.
- For a piece specifically by Blythe, look for her name in the byline. Her May 2026 article about Arctic air is a good starting point if you enjoy understanding the reason behind a change in temperature.
- To hear her away from the news desk, search for Fashion Forecast and Stressed But Well Dressed together. The March 2024 episode is listed under Joanna Blythe.
Frequently asked questions
Does Jo Blythe still present ITV weather?
Yes. ITV lists her with both ITV News Granada and ITV National News. Her national work includes a May 2026 explainer on the cold spell across the UK.
How long has Jo Blythe worked on ITV Weather?
ITV dates her weather presenting career with the broadcaster to 2001. That puts her on-screen career at around a quarter of a century by 2026.
Does Jo Blythe have children?
Yes. ITV’s presenter biography says she is a mother of two. It gives little further family detail and focuses on her broadcasting work.
How old is Jo Blythe?
ITV’s biography confirms when she began presenting but gives no date of birth. Her exact age cannot be established from that profile.
Is Jo Blythe on social media?
ITV lists her X handle as @JoBlytheTV. For a current regional forecast, Granada also has a dedicated weather page you can open directly.
A good place to start
Jo Blythe has spent much of her ITV career answering questions people can use the moment they step outside. Her spring cold snap article is a particularly good introduction to that skill. Read it for the answer to why sunshine can still mean frost, then listen to Fashion Forecast to hear the presenter who usually has only a few minutes to tell the story.
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