Alison Hammond has admitted she turned down her role on ITV's This Morning "quite a few times" because she was "so nervous" about taking on the headline hosting gig.
The 51-year-old rose to fame in 2002 as a contestant on Channel 4 reality show Big Brother, and has since appeared on other reality TV programmes, including I'm A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! and BBC's Strictly Come Dancing. In 2021, Hammond became a headline host on This Morning, teaming up with Dermot O'Leary to present the show's Friday offering. She has also filled in for main hosts—initially Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, now Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley—and gone on to host other shows, including The Great British Bake Off.
Hammond's Initial Reluctance
Speaking on the ITV daytime show on Friday, July 17, Hammond revealed her initial reluctance to take on the gig. Her comments came as she and O'Leary discussed The Traitors host Claudia Winkleman stepping away from her eponymous talk show because she was "too nervous to enjoy" it. The Claudia Winkleman Show, which launched earlier this year, saw the former Strictly host interview celebrity guests in front of a studio audience, but she confirmed this week that there are no plans for a second series.
Hammond said: "I turned down this role quite a few times. I was so nervous, I didn't think I could do it. Even when I did it the first time, I pushed through, and I do actually enjoy it now." She added: "Maybe if Claudia had carried on, she might have enjoyed it."
Dermot O'Leary's Experience with Nerves
O'Leary also admitted he suffered from nerves as a presenter, recounting his experience when he started hosting ITV talent competition The X Factor. "First live show of X Factor, I don't think I've ever been more nervous in my entire life," he said. The 53-year-old added: "You could honestly feel that studio – Fountain Studios – you could feel it; it shook. The noise was that big, and you realise it was like prime time Saturday night and there were 50 million people watching or something. You just had to put that all out of your mind."
