ITV executives ‘regret’ not signing Helen Skelton for This Morning after Holly Willoughby exit?

Helen Skelton is giving a tough time to ITV.

When BBC executives secured Helen to lead their revamped Morning Live show, they were determined to outperform their ITV counterparts, This Morning.

In her new permanent role, alongside Gethin Jones as her co-host, Ms Skelton graced the sofa for the first time, winning the daytime television crown by 160,000 viewers.

BBC leaders expressed being ‘thrilled’ as they garnered an audience of 1.16 million, surpassing This Morning, where Josie Gibson, 38, and Rylan Clark, 35, took over hosting duties following Holly Willoughby’s departure in October.

Meanwhile, production staff at This Morning are ‘baffled’ by their executives’ decision not to sign Ms. Skelton, who had gained a substantial fan base during her appearance on Strictly in 2022.

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.’