Josie

Josie Gibson shares her thoughts on Olivia Attwood’s latest presenting role on This Morning amid huge backlash by trolls as some threaten to boycott show

Josie Gibson has hit back at trolls in defence of Olivia Attwood after she became the victim of cruel jibes following her new presenting role on This Morning. Fans of the ITV daytime TV show have even threatened to boycott the show reportedly due to her rise to fame from Love Island, in 2017.

The 34 year old TV personality, who has since gone on to be a panellist on Loose Women and host her own podcast, had appeared on the third series of the reality TV show. But Olivia is not the first person to have a reality TV background, so too has Josie Gibson, Alison Hammond and Rylan Clark.

Both women were on Big Brother and Rylan shot to fame from X Factor. So it’s perhaps understandable why Josie, 40, has decided to break her silence. It comes after it was announced that Olivia had landed yet another huge TV job.

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In an interview with The Sun, the mum of one who appeared on Big Brother in 2010, said: “Oh my God she’s brilliant. It’s brilliant she gets to do this and I think she’s really good. Yeah, really good. Honestly, you get some backlash like that in this industry and I really don’t know why people do it.”

She added: “I’ll never understand why people do it, you know. To me, I’ve always loved to see people do well and I genuinely love it. I love it when people succeed and I want to bring everybody up and make sure everybody has a go on the horses, do you know what I mean? “

While on This Morning to discuss her new TV show The Price of Perfection in June, Olivia revealed her news to hosts Cat Deeley and Ben Shepherd.

Engineering the conversation, Ben told the former Love Island star “We’ve got some big news about This Morning and you in the summer.”

In response Olivia said: “I have some news yes, it’s very exciting. I’ll be joining you guys on the hosting team on the other side of the sofa.”

The TV duo then gestured for Olivia to sit on their side of the sofa to “feel what it’s like.”

Getting up to switch her seat, the newbie said: “This is even more surreal.”

Complimenting the new addition to the presenting team, Cat said: “We look amazing together.” And this prompted Olivia to ask Cat: “Shall we do a show together?”

The Loose Women panellist add more detail to her announcement as she said: “So it’s a couple of shows, I’m very excited, it’s a huge honour. I’ve grown up watching this show, and being part of the ITV presenting team with Loose Women has been a great experience so this just feels like a very natural progression.”

Olivia was brought in to replace Ben and Cat when they take time off for their six week holiday.

But her new role divided fans. One person wrote: “So Attwood is going to be co-hosting #ThisMorning over the summer. FFS like we don’t get enough of her on #Loosewomen, surprised they haven’t asked that talentless Sam Thompson to step in as well!”

Another added: “How many more viewers do they want to lose? Attwood joining the team is really poor decision.”

A third said: “Just when you think the presenters can’t get any worse they decide to take on Olivia Attwood.”

Meanwhile a fourth penned: “Well done … That’s another step downhill for this show! I wonder who else will be hosting over the summer?”

But not everyone thought her inclusion was a bad idea. One fan of the ITV show wrote: “It’s great that Olivia Attwood will be a presenter on This Morning, she’ll be fantastic.”

And a second said: “Love Olivia, will definitely be tuning in.”

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The BBC’s hit children show The Broom Cupboard saw the birth of many iconic presenters – now Josie D’Arby’s career has taken a surprising turn away from the cameras

In a tiny, cramped booth nestled away in the BBC studios, a whole host of famous TV presenters kicked off their careers.

Children’s TV show The Broom Cupboard began in 1985, replacing the shaky voiceover and still slides linking CBBC shows with real-life presenters.

Despite its practical beginnings it soon became a hit in itself, with the likes of Phillip Schofield, Debbie Flint and Zoe Ball all forging their famous TV personalities on the show.

Iconic characters Edd the Duck, Otis the Aardvark and Gordon the Gopher even joined in on the fun, with letters and drawings from viewers plastered across the walls of the tiny studio room.

Many of the programme’s stars look completely different these days, with brand new careers – and Josie D’Arby is no exception.

After her stint in The Broom Cupboard, Josie went on to become an award-winning presenter, becoming a well-known face on the likes of Songs of Praise, Top of the Pops, Inside Out and Cardiff Singer of The World.

In 1999, the 52-year-old star from Newport, Wales, became the youngest British woman to have her own chat show, titled Josie, on Channel 5.

Josie’s media ambitions didn’t stop there and she soon pivoted to acting, where she starred as Alisha Adams in Holby City and made guest appearances in Casualty and Doctor Who.

She’s even tried her hand as a quiz show contestant, appearing on Richard Osman’s House of Games and Pointless in 2022.

More recently, Josie ditched the cameras for a career that’s worlds away from presenting. The star has been pursuing her artistic talent, even showcasing her painting in a show at the Newport Museum Art Gallery in 2023.

The BBC star started to take art more seriously after winning a televised art competition, South Wales Argus reports. The painting was called Less, which Josie said was “about how little it can take to make people happy.”

“Art is for everyone and I am happy if my piece is just a tiny little reminder that public galleries can be a space and a time to press pause, and enjoy a lovely space if you’re in the city,” she explained.

Before her TV career took off, Josie was said to be in a relationship with Hollywood actor Gerard Butler – known for iconic roles in 300, Law Abiding Citizen and London Has Fallen. The pair apparently briefly dated in 2005.

And Gerard isn’t her only celebrity flame, as Josie reportedly went on a date with actor Joseph Fiennes – the brother of Harry Potter legend Ralph Fiennes – in 2006.

Josie isn’t the only Broom Cupboard presenter who took a different career path. Andy Crane, 61, has been brightening up people’s days on Greatest Hits Radio since 2019 and he looks very different from his days on the CBBC show.

He is now residing in the picturesque location of Lake District. Andy, who was born in the seaside town of Morecambe, Lancashire, presents three hours of the best songs from the 70s, 80s and 90s on Greatest Hits Radio, including The Top 10 at 10 and Midnight Music Marathon.

Before hitting the radiowaves, Andy also presented children’s show, Motormouth, for ITV on Saturdays. He also featured on What’s Up Doc? and Challenge TV.