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This Morning’s Cat Deeley and Alison Hammond party with ITV stars at boozy Christmas bash away from cameras
The evening also marked a bittersweet moment as editor Martin Frizell celebrated his final Christmas with the show
THIS Morning's Cat Deeley and Alison Hammond partied with ITV stars at a boozy Christmas bash away from the cameras.
Cat, 48, who wrapped up in a cream coat paired with a white rollneck top and jeans, led arrivals at the show's annual party.
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Held at the Fox and Pheasant pub in London's Chelsea, owned by singer James Blunt, Alison, 49, kept warm in a black padded coat while greeting her co-stars.
The guest list featured an array of familiar faces, including Alice Beer, who sported a fluffy light brown coat, and Vanessa Feltz, who turned heads in a glitzy black jacket and matching trousers.
Josie Gibson made her entrance in a black coat, with a suitcase and Selfridges shopping bag in tow.
The night was a reunion for ITV favourites Phil Vickery, Ben Shephard, Dermot O’Leary, Ashley James and Tom Swarbrick too, all of whom were in attendance.
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The evening also marked a bittersweet moment as editor Martin Frizell celebrated his final Christmas with the show before his upcoming departure.
News of his exit comes just two months after former presenter Phillip Schofield described the mercurial journalist as a “s***” - dragging up two years of turbulent toxicity.
Although ITV will externally advertise the £155,000 a year role, current Associate Editor Vivek Sharma is heavily tipped to land the coveted gig.
Last night, a source said: “This really is the end of an era for daytime telly; huge changes are afoot.
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“The show has never truly recovered from Holly Willoughby and Phil’s departure, and this is a chance to move on from the old guard and bring in fresh faces to detoxify the brand once and for all.
“The hope is that a few tweaks here and there can make a huge difference - with presenters added to the roster, and a few exciting new features.
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“Martin was mercurial and merciless when he was angry, and a few people were pretty scared of him.
“Martin was old school, but he was also hugely talented, hands-on, hard-working, and dedicated to the running of that ship.
“His strengths, however, were that he was a total maverick and absolutely fearless.
“Whilst officially ITV will open the job up to external candidates, the feeling is Vivek is a shoo-in - he’s brilliant, young, talented and just what the show needs to freshen-up and engage with a TikTok generation. He is bursting with ideas.
“But he knows not to reinvent the wheel, and alienate This Morning core audience of housewives and young mums - but he will do it his way.”
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