Play to the Whistle

Well, the point remains, it's easier to do the shows she's doing now. I'm reminded of back in 2001 when Fern Britton was on maternity leave and ITV rushed her back because This Morning was doing so badly under the hapless stewardship of Twiggy and Coleen Nolan, and people complained they seemed to be forcing her back too soon.

As for Play To The Whistle, the idea is apparently that because she's not massively associated with sport, Holly can add a different spin to the format and make it appear a bit different to A League Of Their Own and appeal to a wider audience. Even though the whole thing is blatantly an attempt to ape A League Of Their Own.

I agree Bradley would have surely been a good choice for host, and maybe someone like Freddie Flintoff (he seems to have done quite a lot on ITV before) to be the other team captain.

He does a League of their Own, so very unlikely.

But then it becomes all men and that begins to turn off the female audience, as well as making it look a complete facsimile of A League Of Their Own. I know it is anyway, but they don't want to make it so obvious. The point of having Holly on it is that she can appeal to a wider audience and adds a diferent element to it.

Whether it'll work or not, heaven knows, but it's a new show and that's the way they want to do it.

Firstly I'm sure the "female audience" will judge people by how entertaining they are, not by their sex. Secondly as ITV are having to find new shows to bring in the "male audience" due to losing the football I'm not sure they'd want the show too skew too female.

My main criticism is they didn't bring in a female presenter with a sports background. ITV once used Millie Clode for the god awful Chris Tarrant game show "The Colour of Money" as an assistant, yet Holly is an ITV 'name'

There are some female presenters with hints of sporting knowledge who would've been a better choice than Holly. Kirsty Gallagher would've been a good choice. But I guess they're trying to reinforce their appeal to that "casual" audience who aren't as sports mad as those who watch A Question of Sport.

Well 'Play to the Whistle' is a Hungry Bear Media production. MD of Hungry Bear Media is Dan Baldwin. Dan Baldwin = Mr Holly Willoughby.

But I do think that its probably better to have a non-sporty host.

How many companies does that guy work for?

I think he is still employed as an executive producer for Talkback - I'm guessing mainly for Celebrity Juice. Hungry Bear he has set up. They have already had Reality Bites, 1000 Heartbeats and Michael McIntyre's Easter Night at the Coliseum all on air - they seem to be getting good commissions from the networks. Michael McIntyre's was produced by a subsidy - Hungry McBear that Michael McIntyre has an involvement in.

Hasn't he got his toes dipped into This Morning or am I imagining that one?

So that's the second time Dan Baldwin has hired his wife on a tv show.