Top of the morning! Host Eamonn is fans’ No1
EAMONN Holmes was voted “King of the Couch” yesterday in a poll to find Britain’s all-time favourite breakfast TV presenter.
The 57-year-old This Morning host saw off fellow stars including Susanna Reid, Chris Evans and Piers Morgan to triumph in the RadioTimes.com survey.
The Belfast-born broadcaster, who fronts the ITV show with his wife Ruth Langsford, has been at the forefront of morning television for more than 20 years.
After learning of his award, Holmes said: “Well, I’m the longestserving Breakfast TV presenter of all time so I’d like to think that in some way you’re not only just the longest or hanging in there but it also equates to being quite good at it.”
He also thanked voters for “remembering that I was there in good days and bad days, when the weather was good, when the weather was bad, when the news was good, when the news was bad”.
The poll canvassed more than 33,000 readers on their favourite early morning faces.
In second place came radio DJ Johnny Vaughan for his four years on Channel 4’s The Big Breakfast.
Morgan, who presents ITV’s Good Morning Britain, which airs before This Morning, was voted third favourite.
Dan Walker of BBC Breakfast came in at number four and Reid – Morgan’s Good Morning co-host – came sixth in the poll.
Chris Evans, another former host of The Big Breakfast, was in ninth place and Lorraine Kelly – who has her own show Lorraine but has hosted ITV’s TV-am, GMTV and Daybreak – was voted tenth.
Jill Dando, who was tragically shot dead on her doorstep 18 years ago when she was host of BBC One’s Crimewatch UK, came 19th for her stint on 1980s show Breakfast Time. Of the top 20 presenters, 10 had worked mostly for BBC Breakfast, eight for ITV, three for Sky News’s Sunrise and two for Channel 4.
Tim Glanfield, editor of RadioTimes.com, said: “Breakfast TV hosts have a very special place in the nation’s heart.
“While the rest of us are bleary eyed and seeking out our first caffeine fix, this very rare breed of presenters manages to educate, entertain and inform us whilst having been up since 3am.
“There couldn’t be a better winner than Eamonn Holmes. A breakfast television institution and a master of live television.”