This Morning viewers were in for a surprise when they tuned into the ITV show on Wednesday, only to see Rylan Clark-Neal co-hosting with Ruth Langsford. Ruth's husband Eamonn Holmes, who normally presents the show with his wife, was notably absent. "Terrible, getting me out of bed like that," Rylan joked at the beginning of the programme. Ruth then explained: "Well, Eamonn couldn't do today so I thought I'd give Rylan a ring. Woke him up."
"It's so nice to have you," she added to Rylan, before hugging him. "It's lovely to be here, my telly mum," he replied. A representative for This Morning also confirmed to HELLO! that Eamonn was on a day off.
Ruth shares pride after Eamonn is awarded OBE:
Rylan had announced to fans that he would be stepping into Eamonn's shoes for the day, taking to Twitter in the early morning to share a selfie with his telly mum. The pair posed in the studio, with Rylan captioning the snap: "Surprise @thismorning @RuthieeL."
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While fans missed regular host Eamonn, who is taking over Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield during the summer holidays, many viewers loved the surprise of seeing Rylan back on screens. Rylan worked as a celebrity correspondent on the show and is still credited as the main relief presenter.
Rylan stepped in for Eamonn on the show
"Please lock the doors so Rylan can't leave so we can see more of Rylan on This Morning, miss him," one follower replied to his selfie. Another wrote: "Our beautiful TV mother and son are back together, yay my Wednesday is even more better." A third agreed, saying: "Great seeing team Ruth and Rylan on my tellybox today, more please."
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Fans are hoping to see Eamonn back on screens later this week, but from next Monday, the Northern Irish presenter will also feature on Good Morning Britain, taking over Piers Morgan's role. Piers will be taking a six-week holiday, while his co-star Susanna Reid will also be taking a long stint from the show.