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This morning’s fans are furious and have vowed to boycott the show over the elimination of Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford.
The longtime couple will be replaced on Fridays by Alison Hammond and Dermott O’Leary in a major shakeup.
However, the popular couple will host the main show on the six-week summer break when Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby are gone.
Eamonn and Ruth are reportedly furious over the decision, and many fans feel the same way.
One wrote on Twitter: “Absolutely disgusting that This Morning has eliminated Eamonn and Ruth. Two of the best television presenters this country has ever seen.
One second he lamented: “Friday is the best show of the week with Ruth and Eamonn, so we won’t see it in the summer !!”
A third was enraged: “It’s a bad decision. Eamonn and Ruth are the only reason I tuned in #This morning. Gutted “.
Alison and Dermott previously impressed bosses when they hosted the show together over the summer, with producers eager to add more diversity to their lineup.
A source told The Mirror: “Eamonn is quite furious and everyone is sorry for him and Ruth, they are very dear to the team, but sometimes tough decisions have to be made.”
A television insider previously told The Sun that Eamonn feared he was “too pale, stale and masculine” to remain a regular face on This Morning for much longer.
They explained: “Eamonn and Ruth are incredibly popular with viewers and loved across the board.
“Nobody wants to see them go. The show executives have some very tough decisions. Eamonn fears he’s basically too ‘pale, stale and masculine,’ and, at 60, maybe not in line with the youthful drive that the announcers.
“One possibility is to keep the couple as regular vacation coverage but lose their regular Friday hours.”
The news of the shakeup comes after ITV Director Carolyn McCall sent an email outlining her fast-track diversity and inclusion plan.
Network insiders were concerned about a rerun of “Sue Barker-gate” after the 64-year-old former tennis champion lost her job heading Question Of Sport for the BBC.
One said, “It will look terrible if Ruth and Eamonn get kicked.
“Many of our viewers are elderly or retired, and they trust them to cheer us up one morning.”
But This Morning bosses are determined to go ahead with the trade after launching an internal investigation into the show’s diversity.
And with Holly and Phil considered “untouchables”, it is Eamonn and Ruth who have been affected by the shakeup.
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