ITV bosses want 'This Morning's new hosts Cat Deeley and Ben Shepard to be more relatable.
ITV bosses want This Morning's new hosts Cat Deeley and Ben Shepard to be more relatable
The TV stars, aged 47 and 49, took the reins of the daytime show from Josie Gibson, 39, and Alison Hammond, 49, and have hit the ground running, with the programme receiving a 200,000 ratings boost. While ITV bosses are mostly happy with the results, they are reportedly keen to get the pair to be more relatable in an effort for audiences to "warm to them".
A source told the Daily Mirror newspaper: "Cat and Ben are both seasoned professionals, but the bosses view relatability as the key to making them really popular.
"They want the audience to warm to them the same way as they warmed to Alison Hammond and Josie Gibson."
Josie had previously taken over the show after Holly Willoughby's exit in 2023, and is reportedly "hurt" over being replaced by Cat and Ben.
A TV insider told OK! magazine: "The person who is really gutted that she wasn't given the role is Josie Gibson - her nose is out of joint. She was touted as the new Holly but wasn't the case. She's hurt over the decision."
Meanwhile, Alison wasn't too upset to be leaving the programme, and had even been offered a full-time position as a host, though opted to "turn it down" after concluding she "doesn’t what the responsibility".
The source shared: "Alison was given the ‘This Morning’ job to do it full time; she was actually the one who didn't want it."
'The Great British Bake Off' star explained that she "never wanted the job" due to her other TV commitments, but insisted that Cat and Ben would "save the show".
When The Sunday Times Magazine asked Alison if she would consider hosting the show full-time, she said: "Absolutely not. How could I? I live in Birmingham and do 'Bake Off' and 'For the Love of Dogs'.
"I never wanted that job. Last year we did extra because we were going through issues, but Cat and Ben will save that show."
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