Laurence Ferrari was hailed as the most glamorous presenter when she took over as anchor on the main French evening news this summer — an observation that has proved to be her undoing.

Her blonde hair, glossy lipstick and youthful smile were blamed for driving away viewers, particularly the over-60s, forcing the TF1 channel to order an overhaul of her look in an attempt to halt a drop in ratings.

Ferrari was told to change her haircut, make-up and clothes to appear less sexy and closer to her age — 42. Her tight white jumpers have been replaced by dark waistcoats; her hair now hangs soberly over her ears, her lipstick is softer and lines can be seen around her eyes and mouth.

Supporters of Ferrari said that she was a victim of prejudice against blondes and that she had given the news a more serious tone. Her glitzy image was an obstacle to her efforts to move the programme upmarket, however. Le Point, a weekly news magazine, said that TF1 executives had now decided that “Laurence Ferrari must become older, be transformed from the glamorous, young newcomer into a well-behaved, upper-class woman”.

The move came after a steady drop in audience figures for the 8pm news on TF1, from about nine million viewers a year ago to eight million this summer. Ferrari was portrayed as the star who could stop the slide when she was appointed in August to replace Patrick Poivre d'Arvor, 60.

The Journal Télévisé on TF1 is still the most watched in France, but the fall has continued. In the same period the audience for the 8pm news on France 2 increased by about 500,000.

Thierry Moreau, the editor of Télé 7 Jours, the television listings guide, said that Ferrari was caught in a general disaffection with TF1 as viewers switched to cable channels and the internet. Her failure to turn around the fortunes of the channel was in part because of her presentation by executives “as a Hollywood icon when they should have sold her as an ordinary woman”.

Moreau added: “She needs time. France is a very conservative country and you don't replace someone who has read the news for twenty years in just three months.”

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