After almost a year of turmoil, This Morning producers hoped to turn the show’s fortunes around with two brand new presenters.
And it looks like bringing in Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard paid off, as their debut episode attracted an average viewership of 806,000 and a peak of one million – one of the show’s highest ratings of 2024 to date.
ITV hoped the duo would provide stability to viewers after months of uncertainty and a revolving door of presenters in the wake of the departures of Holly Willoughby, 43, and Phillip Schofield, 61.
The pair seemed to impress fans, with many saying they saved the show.
One person posting on X, formerly known as Twitter, said: ‘Love seeing Cat and Ben a breath of fresh air, a great duo. A great revamp this morning is long overdue.”
It seems that bringing in Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard has paid off, as the debut episode of This Morning attracted an average viewership of 806,000 and a peak audience of one million – one of the show’s highest viewing figures of 2024 to date.
ITV hoped the duo would provide stability to viewers after months of uncertainty and a revolving door of presenters
Another said: ‘Brilliant! I can now look forward to watching the show again. Mornings spent with Ben and Cat, wonderful!’
And the proof of its success was in the pudding after the show peaked at over a million viewers – 200,000 more than the show had previously received.
In January this year the show peaked at 888,000 viewers and in February it reached 942,000.
And on Monday, March 4, a week before the relaunch, a peak of just 837,000 people watched.
Schofield announced his departure from the show in May 2023 after his romance with a younger male colleague was made public.
Shortly afterwards, ITV bosses were reportedly forced to ‘act quickly’ after viewing figures fell to an average of 726,000.
In contrast, the duo averaged 1.3 million viewers in 2022 and 1.4 million in 2021.
In October last year, Ms Willoughby also announced she was leaving the show after 14 years after a man was charged in connection with an alleged plot to kidnap and murder her.
Cat and Ben have taken over from Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby who both left the show last year
Since their departure, Alison Hammond, 49, and Dermot O’Leary, 50, have stepped in regularly and continue to host the show on Fridays.
Cat and Ben seemed to impress fans, with many saying they saved the show
Since their departure, Alison Hammond, 49, and Dermot O’Leary, 50, have stepped in regularly.
And other guest presenters included Rylan Clark, 35, Emma Willis, 47, Rochelle Humes, 34, Craig Doyle, 53, and Steve Jones, 46.
Shephard and Mrs Deeley will present the show from Monday to Thursday, while Alison and Dermot will continue to present the Friday edition.