When the BBC bosses signed Helen Skelton to host their relaunched Morning Live show, they were determined to beat off their ITV rivals, This Morning.
And yesterday, as Ms Skelton – joined by Gethin Jones as her sidekick – took to the sofa for the first time in her new permanent role as their answer to Holly Willougby, they won the daytime telly crown by 160,000 viewers.
BBC chiefs were said to be ‘thrilled’ after pulling in an audience of 1.16 million compared to This Morning, which was hosted by Josie Gibson, 38, and Rylan Clark, 35, following Ms Willoughby’s departure in October.
Meanwhile, This Morning production staff are ‘baffled’ that their bosses didn’t sign Ms Skelton, who won over millions of fans while appearing on Strictly in 2022.
When the BBC bosses signed Helen Skelton to host their relaunched Morning Live show, they were determined to beat off their ITV rivals, This Morning
BBC chiefs were said to be ‘thrilled’ after pulling in an audience of 1.16 million compared to This Morning, which was hosted by Josie Gibson and Rylan Clark
One told the Mail: ‘They missed a trick by not nabbing Helen. She had done quite a few shifts on Morning Live and the audience loved her, she would have been perfect.’
Despite claiming that they did not want to go head-to-head with This Morning when they launched in 2020, Morning Live announced last month that they were changing their timings which means it now overlaps with This Morning by 45 minutes – making it the first ever direct rival.
BBC One has extended its running time from 45 minutes to 75 minutes, running from 9:30am to 10:45am every weekday and signed single mother Ms Skelton, 40, and Jones, 45, as its full-time duo.
But the war between the two shows runs deeper than just ratings.
Morning Live boss Emma Morris was previously the This Morning editor Martin Frizell’s number two on the show but left the show suddenly around five years ago.
Ms Morris, who is highly regarded at the BBC, went to run The One Show before launching Morning Live and handling its move to Manchester.
With hopes to build its audience Ms Morris oversaw the signing of a host of talent to present the show.
Ms Skelton and Michelle Ackerley will alternately present alongside Gethin Jones every Monday to Wednesday.
Kym Marsh will present on Thursdays, while a host of guest presenters including Sara Cox, Kimberley Walsh, Gaby Roslin and Rav Wilding will co-host regularly.
Ms Skelton – joined by Gethin Jones – took to the sofa for the first time in her new permanent role as their answer to Holly Willougby, they won the daytime telly crown by 160,000 viewers
However, ITV will be happy with their 1 million viewers following a torrid year which saw both Ms Willougby, 42, and Phillip Schofield, 61, leave This Morning
A BBC source said: ‘Emma must be so happy about beating Martin, she worked with him for many years before going off to do her own thing. What a triumph for her.’
However, ITV will be happy with their 1 million viewers following a torrid year which saw both Ms Willougby, 42, and Phillip Schofield, 61, leave This Morning.
Shortly after Schofield admitted to having an affair with a much younger colleague, the show’s ratings went down to around 700,000 – quite a drop from the 1.4 million which he and Ms Willoughby would regularly attract to the show.
Since their exit, with Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary presenting, the episode raked in 703,000 average viewers with a peak of 918,000 in the spring.
Emma Morris, now Morning Live’s Executive Editor, said: ‘Helen and Michelle have been a huge hit with audiences as guest co-hosts since September and are both a joy to work with, so we are thrilled they will now become a permanent part of the team alongside Gethin.’
Ms Skelton stepped down from her presenting role on BBC Radio 5 Live late last year to spend more time with her three children.
