BBC Set to Poach Lorraine Kelly from ITV

She's the undisputed queen of breakfast television at .

For more than 40 years, has been at the helm of the channel's daytime programmes and has grown a following of millions of fans.

But The Mail on Sunday can reveal that rival bosses at the are set to swoop in and poach the Scottish star as they step up their ratings battle with ITV.

Insiders at the corporation say they are developing a show for Ms Kelly, 66, as they realise how much she is loved by viewers.

A team is formulating options for the star to consider, with one source saying there are some 'fantastic' plans for her.

The move comes ten months after ITV announced its daytime 'bloodbath' to cut costs.

As well as making more than half of their staff redundant, bosses enraged Ms Kelly by .

Their decision, which was said to have sent Ms Kelly into a 'fury', has prompted many rumours that she will not sign a new contract.

A BBC source said there was a 'real buzz around the development team' for Lorraine, adding: 'She's stayed loyal to ITV for more than four decades, but the BBC know the time is right to finally get her. They are currently creating different shows to present to her.

'There is no better way to get her revenge than to start working for the BBC. Lorraine is popular and she's a professional.

'She's also so relatable, she's in her mid-60s, like so many viewers. There are some BBC bosses who think she will be just perfect.'

Ms Kelly first joined ITV in 1984 on its now defunct breakfast show TV-am and in 1993 was one of the launch presenters of GMTV.

She was later given her own show, originally called LK Today.

But Ms Kelly found herself out of favour with bosses last summer when they announced their cuts.

Despite Good Morning Britain being given a longer slot, , and This Morning keeping the 10am to 12.30pm slot, it is still Lorraine which gets the highest ratings.

The programme also doesn't even have its own editor – which has allegedly infuriated Ms Kelly. However, she has come under criticism from colleagues while at ITV for being a demanding boss.

'Lorraine was devastated by the culling of her show and the staff working on it,' says a source close to ITV. 'It all feels wrong that her show is being slashed even though it has the biggest audience.

'Now the BBC have come knocking, it's unlikely she will stay at ITV. It would literally be the biggest defection from ITV to the Beeb in many years.'

In 2020, the BBC began its bid to . ITV legend Penny Smith appeared on the show last week and, according to BBC staff, proved popular with viewers.