Alison Hammond is victim of ITV’s historic mistakes – it won’t end well
REPLACING the late great Paul O’Grady on For the Love of Dogs was never going to be easy for Alison Hammond.
Despite not owning any pets, Alison was snapped up by ITV bosses off the back of her soaring success as the new face of This Morning on Fridays and Matt Lucas’s replacement on The Great British Bake Off.
Her surprise signing however, hasn’t gone down well with viewers who have called out the host for looking “uncomfortable and nervous” around the rescues at Battersea’s Dogs and Cats Home.
The feedback is in stark contrast to national treasure Paul’s natural ease around the abandoned pooches – a couple of which he even adopted.
There’s no doubt Alison would call herself an animal-lover, but her lack of experience around dogs has opened up a growing debate on why popular stars are being lined up for jobs that clearly don’t suit them.
You’d be forgiven for feeling as though Alison has only recently catapulted to stardom status, but the mum of one has spent 18 years as a roving reporter on This Morning following a 14-day stint in Big Brother back in 2002.
TV producers seem to be choosing the lazy option of re-casting old favourites instead of going to the effort of finding the next big star.
Amanda Devlin
Her sudden surge in popularity in recent years coincides with a series of scandals at This Morning – as bosses turned to Alison as a friendly face for fans to depend on.
She caused controversy back in 2020 when she and Dermot O’Leary replaced TV legend Eamonn Holmes and his wife Ruth Langsford’s weekly slot – despite being overlooked for the industry’s top jobs for almost two decades.
Now, Alison is barely off-screen – often making high-profile appearances on Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, being a judge on I Can See Your Voice and most notably as co-host of The British Academy Film Awards in 2023.
Despite initial upset over Alison presenting the prestigious Bafta film awards alongside Richard E. Grant, she turned out to be a hit, with some viewers’ only gripe being she was not on stage enough.
However, For the Love of Dogs has been the final straw for some who are apparently outraged the 49-year-old was handed the coveted role – with seemingly more qualified stars like Battersea ambassador Amanda Holden and dog-obsessed Lorraine Kelly snubbed by ITV.
It appears to follow an age-old tradition at the channel (and its rivals) of forcing the popular presenter of the day onto every show possible until the public are sick to the back teeth of them.
One viewer said: “Why didn’t they just end For the love of dogs when Paul O’Grady died. Nobody can replace him, I’m sick of seeing Alison Hammond on everything.”
Another added: “Alison is just on everything…. as if no one considered the alternates?”
Cast your mind back to before scandal-hit Phillip Schofield was forced off telly over an “unwise, but not illegal” affair with a younger male colleague.
It was almost impossible to avoid the silver fox on TV – no matter what time you turned on the channel.
TV's most 'over-exposed' presenters
Alison Hammond:
This Morning (2002-present), For The Love of Dogs (2023-present), The Great British Bake Off (2023-present) plus regular appearances on
Holly Willoughby:
This Morning (2009–2023), Dancing on Ice (2006–2011, 2018–present), The Xtra Factor (2008–2009), Celebrity Juice (2008-2020), I’m A Celeb (2018), Freeze the Fear (2022).
Phillip Schofield:
This Morning (2002–2023), The Cube (2009–2015, 2020–2021), All Star Mr & Mrs (2008–2010, 2012–2016), How To Spend It Well at Christmas with Phillip Schofield (2017–2023), 5 Gold Rings (2017-2020).
Joel Dommett:
The Masked Singer (2020–present), The Masked Dancer (2021–2023), National Television Awards (2021–present), Singletown (2019), Survivor (2023-present).
Stacey Solomon:
Loose Women (2016―present), I’m a Celebrity: Extra Camp (2016), Celebrity Juice (2019), Stacey Solomon’s Renovation Rescue (2024-present), Stacey Soloman’s Craft Christmas (2022-present), Bake Off: The Professionals (2022), Sort Your Life Out (2021-present)
Do you have others to add to the list? Email amanda.devlin@the-sun.co.uk
Alongside his day job at This Morning, Phillip hosted a series of ITV programmes including Dancing on Ice, The Cube, All Star Mr & Mrs, How To Spend It Well at Christmas with Phillip Schofield, Schofield’s South African Adventure and 5 Gold Rings.
Similarly, his former telly partner Holly Willoughby has worked on a variety of ITV shows including This Morning, Dancing on Ice, The Xtra Factor, Celebrity Juice and a one-off stint hosting I’m A Celebrity.
Her TV show domination backfired with her move to the BBC to co-host Freeze The Fear with comic Lee Mack.
The ice challenge show was canned after just one series.
More recently, after boosting his profile in the jungle, Joel Dommett has become the go-to ITV star to host just about anything, from The Masked Singer and The Masked Dancer to becoming the face of the National Television Awards.
However, his spin-off The Masked Dancer was axed after just two seasons amid falling ratings.
Therefore it’s perhaps only fair to suggest that TV producers seem to be choosing the lazy option of re-casting old favourites instead of going to the effort of finding the next big star.
Ultimately it means the most favoured presenters become over-exposed – leading to a growing resentment from loyal viewers.
Alison can‘t be blamed for making hay while the sun shines as she cashes in with her big money deal TV offers
Amanda Devlin
As the famous phrase goes, familiarity breeds contempt. Especially if TV producers continue to select stars who don’t appear to fit the role.
Both Holly and Phil’s downfall came after fans saw through their fakery on-screen amid a feud behind the scenes.
After years of watching the former best friends share inside jokes and hysterical meltdowns, it didn’t take long for daytime viewers to be able to sense the hostility between them through a change in body language.
With TV being consumed in an entirely different way in comparison to ten years ago, there’s a huge risk that viewers who get too familiar with hosts will turn off.
Many This Morning fans who were let down by the Holly and Phil debacle haven’t returned to the show since they were replaced by Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley who have lost tens of thousands of viewers.
However ITV hit back at claims there were secret plans to replace Alison amid the backlash.
A spokesman said: “Everyone’s really pleased with the way Alison has brought her warmth and enthusiasm to the show and we hope viewers continue to enjoy it over the next month on ITV1 and on ITVX.”
Alison can‘t be blamed for making hay while the sun shines as she cashes in with her big money deal TV offers.
And no one can argue she stands out from the crowd with her infectious laugh and bubbly personality.
However, in the long-term will her over-exposure result in ‘turned-off’ viewers turning off?
Despite standing out from the crowd with her unusual interview technique that’s left A-list actors Harrison Ford and Ryan Gosling in hysterics, Alison should be careful not to fall victim to ITV’s historic mistakes and over-egg the pudding.
