Ben Shephard is set to replace Piers Morgan as the co-host of Good Morning Britain, according to reports.
Mr Morgan resigned from the ITV show after ranting about Meghan Markle’s interview with Oprah Winfrey, sparking a record number of Ofcom complaints.
It’s understood that Mr Shephard will co-host the programme alongside Susanna Reid from Monday to Wednesday until September.
A source told Mail on Sunday: “ITV and GMB bosses were totally unprepared for Piers going. Nobody had a back-up plan.
“Ben, who is adored by the staff and much of the audience, stepped in and the thought is now that he will work long term.”
The paper reported that Mr Shephard is seen as the “safest option” as he’s the “consummate professional”.
Good Morning Britain has lost 40 per cent of its viewers since Mr Morgan’s sensational departure.
He stormed off the programme while live on air after a row with weatherman Alex Beresford.
Mr Beresford said: “I understand you don’t like Meghan Markle, you’ve made it so clear a number of times on this programme. I understand you had a personal relationship with Meghan Markle - or had one - and she cut you off.
“She’s entitled to cut you off if she wants to.
“Has she said anything about you since she cut you off? I don’t think she has yet you continue to trash her.”
Mr Morgan sparked backlash when he said that he “didn’t believe a word” of Ms Markle’s interview with Ms Winfrey, where she opened up about her suicidal thoughts.
His comments about the Duchess of Sussex’s interview led to 57,121 complaints to Ofcom.
A statement from the regulator said: “We can confirm that this issue has attracted the highest number of complaints since our reporting began.”
Mr Morgan responded on Twitter, writing: “Only 57,000? I’ve had more people than that come up & congratulate me in the street for what I said. The vast majority of Britons are right behind me.”
