22 December 2023 , 11:10
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Viewers of Lorraine have demanded stand-in host Louise Minchin takes over the role on a permanent basis after impressing on the ITV show for the second time this week.
Regular presenter Lorraine Kelly is currently enjoying time off before returning on Christmas Day, with former BBC Breakfast star Louise at the helm in the Scot's absence. Lorraine, 64, was replaced by guest presenters Christine Lampard and Ranvir Singh during previous weeks off this year, but now fans feel ITV has found the ideal substitute.
Appearing on the sofas on Friday's installment alongside her "dream team" of Andi Peters, Ria Hebden and Jo Elvin, 55-year old Louise opened the show after running a 10K around London the night before. "You must be shattered," said Jo, prompting Louise to admit she "loves doing fun things at Christmas".
Louise enjoyed some festive fun with Andi Peters, Ria Hebden and Jo ElvinThen after showing viewers a viral clip of a TikTok Christmas whipped cream challenge, the foursome hilariously attempted the feat themselves - aiming to flick a dollop of the white stuff from their wrists and into their mouths. After Andy just about succeeded, Ria, Jo and Louise failed miserably, but the fun sparked fans to suggest the latter should replace Lorraine long term.
On X (formerly Twitter), one user declared: "#Lorraine please can Louise Minchin present this show permanently, she’s so good." Another added: "Enjoying @louiseminchin guest presenting #Lorraine." A third was sceptical about Lorraine's apparent return, writing: "Lorraine is back on Christmas Day at 9am. Yes sure… you mean the pre recorded show #Lorraine." And a fourth commented: "@GMB I always enjoyed Louise Minchin when she was on the other side. Great journalist and lovely personality, I would sign her up if I were you."
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Louise quit her BBC role in 2021 after realising everything was "out of balance" with her life despite loving her job. Revealing she felt there was a new world for her away from the show, she explained: "In life, I've tried to be brave. I don't even know if it was the right decision - I think it was but sometimes you have to jump off the ferry and that was the time."
And speaking on Her Spirit podcast, Louise admitted she was still unsure whether she had made the "right decision" and that it took her a "long time" to quit the red sofa for good. "It wasn't just months, it was probably even longer than that," she said of her decision to leave.
"In the end, my husband always said, 'There will be a moment.' And the moment was very specific because it had been going around my head so much." The presenter then said that she went back to the basics of a pros and cons list to help her make the final decision.
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