23 January 2024 , 09:49
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Presenter Sian Welby made a lasting impression on viewers after making her debut on This Morning yesterday as co-host.
The 37-year-old TV and radio star delighted fans with her fresh take, 'bringing fun' to the ITV daytime programme. As the show's showbiz reporter, Sian has stepped in this week alongside Dermot O'Leary as the broadcaster continues to search for a replacement for Holly Willoughby.
She has been dubbed a 'rising star' at the network, sources say, with bosses wanting to give her a chance to see if she can step up. A source told MailOnline: "Sian has many years of presenting experience under her belt, she is very much ear marked as being a star of the future.
Dermot O'Leary presenting alongside Sian Welby (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)"She has done really well already on This Morning so the bosses thought it was time to give her the reins to the whole show rather than just segments." But what do we know about Sian's life away from the cameras?
Sian, from Nottingham, started presenting at 19. She starred in an advert for New! magazine and was spotted by Channel 5 boss Richard Desmond. Whilst working part-time as a shop assistant at New Look, Sian became the face of Channel 5 News.
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She had been working in the store by day, and recorded videos in the fitting room after the shop closed. She went on to become the lead weather presenter and turned her hand to radio, where she has presented for Heart and Capital.
When it comes to her personal life, the presenter is loved-up with her radio producer fiancé Jake Beckett. The couple got engaged last summer, with her revealing the happy news to her Instagram followers.
Alongside a smiley photo of the two, with Sian showing off her diamond ring, she wrote: "I thought we were just going on a boat trip!!. Genuinely didn't see this coming. For once I am totally speechless. I didn't think it mattered until he asked me, and then suddenly it meant everything. Love you Jakey x 15.8.23."
Sian was left speechless (Instagram/ @sianwelby)
Sian is engaged to radio producer Jake (Instagram/ @sianwelby)The pair met at work as Jake works for Heart Breakfast as a creative producer, alongside celebrity hosts including Kelly Brook, Rochelle Humes, Vogue Williams and Emma Bunton. Both Sian and Jake have a close circle of celeb pals, and it was in fact Spice Girls' Emma and fellow presenter Amanda Holden who helped Sian's elderly dad 'cheat death'.
In May 2022, her father caught coronavirus while suffering from cancer, with him left fighting for his life. He took a downward spiral after suffering from sepsis and pneumonia in both lungs.
There was a chance he'd never come home, and lost more than six stone as he battled for his life across a seven-week stint in hospital. But Sian became a firm believer in positive thinking, and says her celebrity pals helped "bring him back to life".
Talking about sharing updates online, Sian said: "A week after that post of me hugging him, and after 37,000 people liking and commenting on my story, I really believe in the power of positivity. He couldn't believe Emma Bunton and Amanda Holden sent him a message to get well soon!
"He asked me to print all the DMs out so he can look at them when I’m not there! It was honestly a miracle." Sadly Sian knows all too well what it is like to have lost an immediate family member, having never been able to meet her sister.
Before Sian was born, her older sister tragically died of meningitis - inflammation of the lining of the brain and spinal cord. As a result, the presenter is an active supporter of several charities including Sick Children's Trust. Speaking to the Express, Sian explained: "The Sick Children’s Trust is a wonderful charity. My older sister sadly died from meningitis before I was born, so it's a cause that’s close to my heart".