The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Stars step in as cover for polar trek Lorraine
Helen Skelton and Christine Lampard to host show while Scot goes on adventure
Helen Skelton and Christine Lampard will take over the reins of daytime programme Lorraine while host Lorraine Kelly embarks on an adventurous polar trek to mark her 25th wedding anniversary.
Countryfile star Skelton, currently pregnant with her second child, is to front the ITV daily morning show for a week from Monday February 20 and it will be her last TV role before she goes on maternity leave.
Picking up from Monday February 27 for two weeks will be ex-The One Show host and Loose Women star Lampard.
It will be a returning role for Skelton, but Lampard’s first time fronting lifestyle and entertainment show Lorraine.
Kelly, meanwhile, is fulfilling her lifelong ambition to take a trip from the South Atlantic to South Georgia, following the same Trans-Antarctic route that polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton, her hero, took a century ago.
Kelly said: “I’m so excited for what will definitely be a trip of a lifetime and I feel very reassured to know that the show is in such safe hands while I’m away.
“I’ll be keeping in touch from Antarctica throughout my journey and I look forward to sharing my adventure with Lorraine viewers when I get back!”
Lorraine editor Sue Walton said: “We’re delighted to welcome Helen back to Lorraine – along with her energy, sparkle and empathy and love of live TV. Christine shares this love for live TV and we’re excited to be introducing her to Lorraine viewers.
“Christine is a natural, warm and charismatic broadcaster and as she and Helen take their turn at the helm, the show promises to be as engaging, lively and entertaining as ever.”