This Morning

It's really telling how television has changed. The industry used to be full of people that would have been capable of filling Phil's boots, someone middle of the road in style, not too trendy. I guess a direct result of the decline of regional telly? Less platforms to nurture such talent.

Absolutely agree. I guess by the time Phil steps down Ben Shepherd will be free once again, though Dermot isn't a bad shout at all considering how he has spoken in the past about live TV. As long as it's not Stephen Mulhern they should be OK.

To be honest though I suspect Holly would step down before Phil and there are probably more options in replacing her. And as much as I like Eammon and Ruth now Loose Women is her main role I do think it would be wise to step them down and bring in fresh blood on Fridays - if for no other reason than to line up potential replacements for Holly and Phil.

When Eamonn and Ruth are on, it reminds me of pre-2009 TM when I could relate to the presenters. However the Friday pres style jars with the Mon-Thurs celeb/tabloid vapidity of the main duo.

Schofe is a decent presenter and when he's away from TM it shows, but I hate how since Fern departed, the female presenter has been the giggler of the two with not one sidekick on the same level as him.

The charisma just isn't there. For me Phil and Fern were completely 50/50, they both genuinely got on, it was a great partnership and there was no hierarchy, they both had equal placings when it came to presenting styles and taking turns in the interviews.

Now with Philip and Holly I just find that Phil has gained prominence and stature and Holly is there to provide the giggles.

For example, If an incident occurred like the Kerry Katona incident in 2008 nowadays, I don't imagine anything would be said to the guest now. Whereas Phil and Ferns parental instinct at the time told them that something was not right and needed addressing.

I'm not dead against Holly and Phil, I just found their partnership better on Dancing on Ice on a scripted show than I do on This Morning.

The programme is really missing a Fern figure. But that said I find the times when Ruth and Phil present together that it returns to an equal partnership even if the relationship between them isn't as strong.

I just feel Holly is not strong enough for the programme and after 6 years, she should be more than comfortable with it by now.

She's settled into her role as giggler, but the same with all these female co-hosts when they do a hard (by TM terms) news story, they're totally incapable of asking the right questions. Holden was atrocious when they did two ways to Sousse after the Tunisian terrorist attack.

Richard, Judy, Eamonn and Ruth at least have their journalistic background to fall on when dealing with serious stories as well as the Take a Break fluff.

This Morning are on a live link to the STV Glasgow studio to interview guests currently.

* the stv studio in Glasgow, it's also used for the west as well as Glasgow

STV Glasgow, the local broadcaster, or STV Central (West), the ITV licensee that covers Glasgow?

I know she does virtually nothing these days, but Phil's old mucker Emma Forbes would've been THE shout when Fern left... a real missed opportunity - and I have it on good authority that she was in with a decent chance.

I think Emma Forbes would have been a perfect replacement for Fern, but I'm not sure they were looking for a Fern MkII. I think they made a wise decision in terms of what they wanted to do (ie improving the media profile of the programme and freshing it up)

It's important to remember how tired This Morning was looking towards the end of Fern's tenure.

Totally agree whataday. No matter what you think of the current editorial content, Holly's hiring, the programme rebrand and the different features introduced have helped the show over the last few years. I for one have missed Holly a lot and feel that Phillip and herself have a brilliant chemistry that makes the programme watchable. Something that I don't find as much when Phillip presents with somebody else.

Yet is still trounced by BBC One's pre-recorded daytime output, admittedly by older viewers who prefer shows about antiques and homes over tabloid banality which caters to younger housewives.