Ben Shephard is set to join Holly Willoughby as the new co-host of This Morning.
The popular Good Morning Britain anchor, 48, is slated to begin his journey on the ITV Daytime series at 10 am this upcoming Monday (September 15), with the Friday duo Alison Hammond, 48, and Dermot O’Leary, 50, disclosing the news at the end of their episode today (September 22).
Alison shared: “’Holly will be back on Monday when she’s gonna be presenting alongside the lovely Ben Shephard,” to which Dermot humorously added: “’Yeah as it should be.” Craig Doyle, 52, had been Holly’s consistent co-anchor for several Mondays and Tuesdays, while others like Josie Gibson, 38, Dermot, and Alison took turns co-hosting with Holly since This Morning’s recent comeback.
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(Image: ITV1)
But show fans who caught wind of Ben’s upcoming stint swiftly migrated to X, previously Twitter, expressing their reservations. “Hang on, did they say Ben Shepherd’s presenting Monday?! This new format really hasn’t settled down, just appears to be ‘whoever is free’ rather than ‘who’s best-qualified to present’ #thismorning,” wrote one fan. “The constant changes with Holly’s co hosts each week doesn’t look good for a show that’s recently been labelled toxic #thismorning,” added another viewer.
(Image: Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
The decision makers at ITV opted not to splash out on a high-profile replacement for Phillip Schofield, instead, they wanted a dynamic set of co-hosts to accompany Holly. This Morning insiders had mentioned names like Josie, Craig, Dermot, and Alison, leaving out Ben’s name back then. Sources within ITV hinted that this new framework ensures Holly remains the central figure, preventing any rift like the one she had with Phillip.
(Image: Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
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An ITV insider expressed: “The concept of finding another Phillip for Holly was set aside by the This Morning team. It’ll predominantly be Holly’s platform, with different guest presenters accompanying her. The emphasis is clearly on Holly now.”
“The idea of finding the next Phil to sit next to Holly has been disregarded by This Morning’s bosses. It will be Holly along with whichever rotating presenter is selected to join her. It will essentially be Holly’s show.
“Bosses hope that they can put all of the Schofield scandal behind them and start concentrating on the content of the show rather than the twosome presenting it. At least this way there won’t be any falling out.
“Holly is so excited about the plan, she loves Josie, Craig, Alison and Dermot. It’s a happy ship and she made the decision not to quit but instead to return and keep things going while being at the helm. Holly is absolutely determined to head up the challenge to make the show a success again.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
