The future of Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary on This Morning has been ‘revealed’.
The presenters of the ITV show have commitments with other channels throughout the summer but execs have reportedly now secured the pair for the summer programmes, reports The Sun.
It’s thought that Josie Gibson and Craig Doyle were going to be lined up as the leads of the show but now, they will instead be supporting presenters alongside Joel Dommett and more.
The newspaper said This Morning’s viewing figures decreased by half (as low as 486,000) since Cat Deeley and Ben Shepherd became presenters on the show but on Friday, June 28 while Alison and Dermot were presenting, figures hit 620,000.
There's no #ThisMorning on your screens today, due to coverage of the #GeneralElection, but @benshephard and @catdeeley will be back with you next week with this star-studded lineup... ⭐️
— This Morning (@thismorning) July 5, 2024
Tune in, weekdays from 10am on ITV1, ITVX or STV. 📺 pic.twitter.com/inuZSx1tgL
A source told The Sun: “Viewers love Alison and Dermot so locking them in for the summer was a priority.
“Josie and Craig are great but execs couldn’t risk losing their best names when a spotlight’s on the show.
“It’s hoped a decent summer run from Ali and Dermot could get things off to a head-start when Cat and Ben return in September.”
The pair have taken on additional responsibilities for other channels, hence the uncertainty of how much they’d appear on This Morning in the summer.
Hammond will be part of two projects with the BBC – Alison Hammond’s Big Weekend and Florida Unpacked.
Her 19-year-old son Aiden will join her on the travel show Florida Unpacked with filming starting this summer.
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O’Leary will be the host of a new gameshow on UKTV’s Dave.
The source said: “Things looked a bit wobbly when Ali booked the travel show.
"It’s due to film in Florida before September. Thankfully, the schedules have worked out.”
The Sun reports that a spokesperson for This Morning said: “Our summer presenting line-up will be announced in due course.”
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