From hospital radio to household name: How married mother-of-one Storm Huntley jostled to the front of the queue as Holly Willoughby’s long-term replacement on This Morning

Ever since Holly Willoughby announced her departure from This Morning, the question most fans of the show have been asking is who will replace her?

After 14 years of huge success alongside Phillip Schofield, Willoughby stunned ITV executives by walking away from the coveted role after an alleged plot to kidnap and kill her was made public in October.

Still recovering from Schofield’s own more acrimonious departure in June, the beleaguered show is now looking for two long-term replacements – and the favorite to fill Willoughby’s stylish stiletto heels isn’t exactly a household name.

Storm Huntley – who presents segments on Channel 5’s Jeremy Vine program – is rumored to be the frontrunner, with bookmaker William Hill putting her odds at 2/1 to get the job… but who is she?

The Scottish presenter, born in 1987, got her distinctive first name after her mother read Wilber Smith’s 1977 novel A Sparrow Falls, in which the main character has the same name.

Huntley grew up in the town of Bishopbriggs in East Dunbartonshire and attended the local secondary school before gaining a degree in politics and economics from the University of Glasgow in 2008.

She continued her studies in England, where she enrolled for a postgraduate degree in broadcast journalism at the London College of Communication.

She took on her first media role while studying in Glasgow with jobs at a local hospital radio station and the university’s non-profit freeform radio station, Subcity Radio.

After graduating, she started at the bottom, gaining unpaid work experience before finding paid work as a researcher at BBC Scotland.

After developing a keen interest in weather reporting, she took a meteorology course at the Open University, a decision which led to Huntley presenting the weather on STV Glasgow’s Riverside Show.

Like Willoughby – who started her career knee-deep with custard tarts and buckets of goo in children’s show Ministry Of Mayhem – her potential replacement also enjoyed a stint entertaining children on CBeebies, having worked on BAFTA-nominated show Down On The since 2015 Farm had worked.

More recently she has appeared on Channel 5’s debate show The Wright Stuff and Jeremy Vine, where she was co-host.

The Scottish presenter has a similarly clean-cut image to Willoughby and documents her family life with her 15-month-old son Otis and rocker husband Kerr Okan of indie band The LaFontaines on social media.

Even her dog Boo is getting in on the action, with Huntley running an Instagram account for the adorable Shih Tzu – who already has an impressive 1,843 followers.

Huntley and Okan confirmed their engagement in 2020 and married on the banks of Lock Lomond the following year, with fellow presenter Carol Smillie serving as the couple’s officiating registrar.

After becoming pregnant with her first child, Huntley launched the podcast Mums In The Making – a light-hearted look at pregnancy throughout each trimester – with writer and producer Rachel Fulton.

Responding to rumors of her possible This Morning appointment last week, Huntley said on Instagram: “Very flattering, but I think there may be a scheduling issue.”

A number of people are believed to be in the running for Willoughby’s former role, including part-time presenters Alison Hammond, Rochelle Humes, Josie Gibson, Kate Garraway and Davina McCall.

But PR guru Andy Barr told the story The Scottish sun that advertisers would return to the show in droves if Huntley got the role.

He said: ‘Storm Huntley is quickly increasing the bookmakers’ chances of making the jump to ITV’s This Morning.

‘While all speculation so far points to the competition in the job market being between her and the ever-charismatic Alison Hammond, I wonder whether ITV will take the opportunity to give the format a complete makeover and show with two female presenters. . And why not?

‘Have a single male guest presenter come in and out, like now, or even make it more of a panel format with a few different presenters coming in and out, but with Storm and Alison leading the way.

‘The powerhouse duo, with their strong brand image and large fan base, could see big-spending advertisers lining up to return to the programme.’

Meanwhile, ITV has released a new document, The Personal Relationships At Work Policy, which asks employees whether their interactions with each other are sexual, romantic and even platonic.

According to The Sunday Times, it says: ‘If there is a personal relationship between you and another colleague (whether it began before or during your employment or involvement with ITV), both parties must disclose this to the company as soon as possible. possibility.

Those who violate the policy may face disciplinary action and loss of employment.”

One ITV employee said the document was ‘pretty crazy’.

It comes amid an investigation into the conduct of ex-This Morning presenter Schofield, 61, who had an affair with a younger male colleague.