EXCLUSIVE: Dance free, Holly? BBC ‘looks to lure Willoughby to Strictly’ as ‘This Morning’ star bounces back after Phillip Schofield scandal
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Channel executives, including Chief Content Officer Charlotte Moore, have made it clear that they wanted to poach the presenter from ITV for their prime-time weekend slots – but so far there hasn’t been a show big enough for her.
But The Mail on Sunday has learned the BBC is looking into getting the This Morning star a role on Strictly.
The dance competition, which airs Saturday nights and is hosted by Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman, draws more than seven million viewers per episode.
A company insider said: “Holly is the golden goose.” BBC bosses want her and have been planning to recruit her for their big shows for some time.
EXCLUSIVE: BBC bosses plan to cha-cha-hunt Holly Willoughby and give her one of TV’s most coveted roles – hosting Strictly Come Dancing
“You know how popular she is, but it also has to be the right programme.” It was recently discussed on the BBC that Strictly might be one way to attract her.
“There are ideas of how she could fit in there – no one’s quite sure yet, but you think she’d be perfect.”
“It seems like a big project to get them to do that and would mean that things would kind of be postponed on the show, but there are some executives at the BBC who want it to happen.”
Ms Willoughby has presented several BBC shows, most recently with Lee Mack on the midweek show Freeze The Fear With Wim Hof.
Last November, the BBC showed how much they wanted to lure her into more projects when she was the guest of honor at Ms Moore’s table at the Variety Showbusiness Awards.
ITV bosses are said to be “seething” after the event, which took place at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel.
Also present was Dan Baldwin, TV producer and husband of Mrs Willoughby, who makes programs for the BBC including Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel.
After false reports that Phillip Schofield, Ms Willoughby’s former co-host of ‘This Morning’, was chosen to star in ‘Strictly’, the BBC was quick to put the rumors to rest, telling this newspaper that they are firmly committed to ‘Team Holly ‘ and never would have said Schofield about his entertainment shows.
Exciting! The Mail on Sunday has learned the BBC is looking into getting the This Morning star a role on Strictly (pictured are presenters Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman).
A BBC boss also said there was “a greater chance of Gordon the Gopher showing up on the dance floor” – a nod to the hand puppet that served as Schofield’s mascot on children’s television in the 1980s and 1990s.
The BBC may be hoping to sign Ms Willoughby for a golden handcuff deal, but it’s thought she thinks she’ll go where the work is.
She has also made it clear she wants to keep her job as presenter of This Morning and ITV hit Dancing On Ice after Schofield left both.