Paul O'Grady hopes the late Cilla Black would approve of him hosting 'Blind Date'.
Paul O'Grady and Cilla Black
The late television personality - who passed away in August 2015 - presented the iconic British television show between 1985 until 2003 and the 61-year-old star, who is taking over the reigns when the show returns, hopes his pal would be proud of his appointment.
He told the Sunday Mirror newspaper: "It's impossible shoes to fill, never mind hard. Cilla did it for so long.
"I hope she won't be throwing plates at me. I mention her loads of times."
Meanwhile, Paul previously revealed he felt Cilla's spirit during filming for the Channel 5 dating show.
He said: "I could feel myself morphing into Cilla, the arms were going up and the voice would go down - and I said, 'What is your name number one and where do you come from?' I even said we are gonna have a lorra lorra laughs."
And Paul has promised Cilla will still be part of the revamped programme.
He added: "I can get away with saying things about her because we're mates. Somebody who didn't know her couldn't do that because it might be seen as disrespectful. I can say, 'She left me this in her will. Thanks, Cilla.'
"You can't ignore her. It was such an iconic show and she was synonymous with it. It would be disrespectful not to mention her. The old girl will be living on. I'm really looking forward to it."
Paul also feels hosting 'Blind Date' will bring him closer to Cilla again.
He said: "The reason I want to do it is I don't want it to be messed up. I might mess it up but then it's my fault and I'll give it my best shot. 'Blind Date' was funny and that's what we need to get back to. The laugh we'll have with some of the contestants ... And doing it means I'm sort of close to her again. I can hear her now, 'Come on, Paul.' I'll morph into her. I know I will. I can see it happening. Her son Robert is all for it and he said to me, 'If Mother was alive, she'd be over the bloody moon.'"
Tagged in Cilla Black