Carol Smillie has claimed she was refused a presenting job on 'Loose Women' because she was "happily married."

Carol Smillie

Carol Smillie

The 55-year-old television presenter may be one of the nation's favourite sweethearts but she has admitted her good looks and charm hasn't helped her bag every gig she's gone after as she was once snubbed from the lunchtime show's panel because she didn't have enough drama going on in her life and was too loved up with her spouse Alex Knight.

Speaking to Express.co.uk, she said: "It was quite a long time ago, before I left television. I auditioned because I thought I'd have a laugh and that it'd be good to be a part of it.

"I eventually got in to see them and I had this weird interview where the producer said: 'So, tell me about your romantic past', and I said: 'What do you mean?' and he said: 'Well, how many boyfriends have you had?' I thought, 'Are you allowed to say that?' It's ridiculous. I told him not many but I said I felt that the current panel, at the time, didn't have a fair representation of all women. I'd been married, at that point, for about, I don't know, 15 or 20 years, and I said, 'I'm still very happily married and it's only fair that you have a good mix of women who have had divorces, some who are still married, some who are single, some who are young and some who are old.'

"He was like, 'Hmm... You know they all go on holiday together?' I said, 'Is that a proviso?' and he was like, 'No, but you know'. I didn't get it [the presenting job], but I thought I don't really know that I want to be on that."

Bosses of the lunchtime debate show are regularly trying to find ways to improve the programme and recently decided to shake things up by ditching and replacing some of the panellists.

Ruth Langsford and Andrea McLean remain as the show's main hosts, while Coleen Nolan, Janet Street Porter and Nadia Sawalha are also thought to be safe.

BANG Showbiz has reached out to ITV for comment.

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