KATIE HIND: Why ITV execs chose Cat Deeley to replace Holly Willoughby on This Morning instead of up-and-comer Sian Welby

Just days after Holly Willoughby quit this morning, ITV began discussions about how they could lure Cat Deeley to replace her on the programme’s coveted bench.

Holly had barely tidied her dressing room before the Birmingham-born former children’s TV presenter was their top candidate to save the programme.

She was the only star for the network who they thought could bring them the glitz and success that Mrs. Willoughby did in her heyday.

Their dream was to merge Cat with her husband Patrick Kielty – a ‘Cat and Pat’ brand to recreate the good old days of Richard and Judy.

But with Patrick happily ensconced and earning a substantial salary as host of the Irish Late Late Show, they knew that would be almost impossible.

Cat and Ben have been the subject of whispers for a while now

So in recent weeks there has been much joy as it finally became clear that they had managed to make at least half of that dream a reality.

Cat has agreed to join This Morning. Beside her is Ben Shephard, presenter of ITV’s previous show, Good Morning Britain, who had been waiting in the wings.

He had postponed signing his contract until he knew who his leading lady would be. ‘When Patrick was out of the game, ITV wanted Ben and Cat, or Cat and Ben.

They didn’t know how to get the names, they were nicknamed BenCat months ago. That’s what they were working towards.”

Although Ben, 49, had agreed in principle to move from Good Morning Britain, where he hosted for the past decade, getting Cat’s signature was much more difficult.

Ultimately, ITV had to postpone the relaunch date by months while Cat, 47, completed work on US reality show So You Think You Can Dance, which she has fronted since 2006.

An ITV insider revealed: ‘The negotiations were all about Cat’s diary and her commitments to So You Think You Can Dance and fulfilling her contract in the US.

She wanted to make sure she was doing the right thing.

‘Cat always wanted to do it, but it was about logistics and it wasn’t easy.’

Indeed they were not.

Following Cat’s impressive performance as host of four shows for This Morning last November, as ITV held auditions in the hunt for the next Holly, she had told bosses she was keen to take on the role full-time.

However, it was the beloved Rylan Clark she wanted to sit next to and not next to Ben, she confided to friends, after hosting two episodes with him.

She also had to balance her home life, with Kielty, with whom she has two young sons, working in Ireland from Tuesday to Friday.

Her months-long commitments to So You Think You Can Dance also meant she would be unavailable in early 2024, when ITV initially wanted to relaunch the show.

So during the first week of December, ITV chiefs were back to the drawing board. “They were gutted,” a source said on This Morning.

‘There was so much excitement around bringing Cat in, she was like a breath of fresh air when she arrived at the studios.

‘Let’s not forget how traumatic it had been for the production staff months earlier. First Phil left, then Holly. The viewing figures dropped and for the outside world the program was absolutely poisonous.

Ben Shephard and Holly Willoughby on This Morning last year

Cat confided to friends that it was the beloved Rylan Clark she wanted to sit next to, instead of Ben, after hosting two episodes with him

Sian Welby, pictured, will also have a bigger role on This Morning

‘Then came Cat and her big smile and things got better for a few days. There was hope that the good old days, the early days of Phil and Holly, would return. Then it all came crashing down and it was back to reality.

‘Once again ITV executives asked for ideas on who to hire. I was even invited to lunch to express my thoughts. Meanwhile, Cat was busy recording So You Think You Can Dance auditions in America and had all but given up hope of signing with This Morning.

I’m told ITV daytime head Emma Gormley and This Morning editor Martin Frizell were looking at new stars, but CEO Dame Carolyn McCall and her number two, Kevin Lygo, were still determined to get Cat and reverse their controversial program. was once the jewel in ITV’s daytime crown.

Lygo felt there was something special about bringing Cat back to the station where she made her name in the late 1990s and early 1990s.

Many will remember that, like Holly, Cat began her career in children’s television, starting as co-presenter on the children’s show SMTV Live in 1998, for which she won a BAFTA Children’s Award.

But it was the spin-off, CD:UK, that made her famous. She was offered the job by Ant and Dec and would be a sister-like character alongside the duo for seven years, winning over viewers with her cheerful demeanor.

ITV’s dream was to team Cat with her husband Patrick Kielty, both pictured

Like Holly, men wanted to date Cat, while women wanted to be her best friend. In 2003 she presented Fame Academy on BBC1 and also became presenter of the ITV talent show Stars In Their Eyes, which she presented until 2005. The following year she moved to the United States, where she presented So You Think You Can Dance.

Some at This Morning were against her appointment. A senior executive explained that they were concerned that Cat might be too “Hollywood and polished” for the This Morning audience after her years in the United States, and it became a major point of discussion for the network’s leaders.

“What if she’s too unrecognizable?” noted an insider. ‘She is literally shiny and Tinseltown and we can’t forget that part of Holly’s problem in her later years was that she was perceived by viewers as too perfect. ‘But the battle to get This Morning back to its best outweighed the question of Cat being too glamorous.

Of course, Cat’s new This Morning commitments mean she won’t be able to present the next series of So You Think You Can Dance, which starts filming in December.

And it’s no coincidence that ITV started getting excited about her takeover again, shortly after the US show’s boss Nigel Lythgoe resigned following multiple allegations of sexual assault, including one from singer Paula Abdul.

“The timing matches,” a This Morning insider mused. ‘Perhaps that has meant that So You Think You Can Dance may not return for another series if Nigel isn’t having a good time.’

Meanwhile, Sian Welby, the former Channel 5 weather presenter and showbusiness correspondent for This Morning, was almost handed the prestigious role when he took the reins alongside Dermot O’Leary last month.

Frizell – seen by some as a television Svengali – was impressed by her and began to think she could be the bubbly ‘next Holly’.

A source at the show tells me: ‘No one expected Sian to become a contender, but she made an instant impression and was suddenly a serious replacement for Holly. I’m told viewers will be seeing a lot more of Sian in the coming months as This Morning bosses look to ‘grow’ her to future-proof their programme.

‘But for now it’s all about BenCat, who will make their debut on the program next month in return for a reported £550,000 a year each.

When unveiled today, Cat said of the show: ‘This Morning is a national institution. Whenever it’s on, it’s like having your friends over: funny, smart, crazy, genuine, informative and cheerful – like all best friendships!’

Speaking of which, ITV bosses will surely be hoping that Ben and Cat (or Cat and Ben) don’t end up fighting each other like cat and dog, and don’t fall apart as spectacularly – or even as publicly – as their predecessors.