Alison Hammond was “scared” of dogs during an interview for ‘This Morning’.
Alison Hammond was 'scared' of dogs during a piece for This Morning
The 49-year-old presenter - who took over from the late Paul O'Grady as the host of the popular programme 'For the Love of Dogs' - visited Claire-Louise Nixon, the founder of Wheels to Paws UK, a charity for disabled dogs, and met with 27 canines for a segment on the ITV daytime show but the guest has revealed that Alison was terrified of the pooches and only did the piece to pay the bills.
She told The Sun newspaper: “I did ask her, ‘Why did you do this interview if you are scared of dogs?’ She replied, ‘I’ve got to pay my mortgage’.”
Nixon also revealed that 'The Great British Bake Off' host insisted the segment had to be shot outside due to her dog fear.
She said: “Alison was scared of dogs when she came to interview me so we had to do it outside.”
However, an ITV spokesperson explained the segment was not filmed indoors because it was “more appropriate” if shooting took place outside.
They told the MailOnline: “The decision to film outside was made by the production team entirely independently of Alison purely on the basis that it was a more appropriate fit for the item and the show and any suggestion otherwise is inaccurate.”
Alison admitted that she could understand why some viewers were unhappy that she had succeeded Paul on 'For the Love of Dogs' as she does not own a pooch herself.
She told The Sun newspaper: “I could understand in the sense that Paul was so loved, and people were saying, 'How can she do Love Of Dogs when she doesn't have a dog? How does she love dogs when she doesn't have a dog?’”
Hammond previously explained that her phobia of dogs could be traced back to when she watched a boy get attacked by a vicious canine.
In her autobiography ‘You’ve Got To Laugh’, she wrote: “The dog took a massive chunk out of his leg and blood poured everywhere.
“I had to help him hobble back to his mum, screaming in pain.
“For weeks afterwards, the kids on our street never stopped talking about savage dogs and gushing wounds.”
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