Ben Shephard has made a joke at the expense of his soon-to-be co-host Cat Deeley’s husband Patrick Kielty ahead of the pair’s This Morning launch on Monday.
The presenter, 49, and Cat, 47, make their debut as the permanent hosts of ITV’s This Morning on March 11, finally replacing Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby.
While Ben and Cat have never worked together before, they met during ITV’s 2012 SoccerAid campaign – along with Patrick, 53.
Speaking to the Mirror’s We Love TV magazine, Ben said: ‘We’ve never been lucky enough to work together before. I’ve taken a lot of penalties against her husband, though, and he’s yet to save one.’
Ben played as a forward and Patrick as a goalkeeper for opposing teams in the SoccerAid match, with Patrick failing to save Ben’s shots.
Ben Shephard, 49, has made a joke at the expense of his soon-to-be co-host Cat Deeley’s, 47, husband Patrick Kielty, 53, ahead of the pair’s This Morning launch on Monday
The presenter and Cat (pictured with Patrick) make their debut as the permanent hosts of ITV’s This Morning on March 11, finally replacing Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby
Cat was a presenter at the match. Ben continued: ‘I’m a huge fan of Cat’s – she’s just a brilliant broadcaster. I loved waking up to her [on SM:TV Live] so the chance to work together is really fun.’
Ben and Cat were officially unveiled as the new permanent faces of This Morning on February 16.
Patrick swooned over his wife Cat on Instagram on Friday ahead of the debut, saying: ‘If there’s anyone in the world made for This Morning, it’s this human.’
Cat had been reportedly struggling to choose between the breakfast show and her £43,000-an-episode US presenting gig on So You Think You Can Dance.
Ben had his final GMB show on February 23, leaving his ‘on-screen wife’ Kate Garraway after nearly 20 years.
He said at the time: ‘One of the hardest decisions of course is knowing that my mornings with Kate, my on-screen wife of nearly 20 years, is coming to an end.’
The pair had been locked in talks for some months prior to the announcement.
It had been claimed that Cat was finally won round with a lucrative deal, but insiders at ITV denied the claims.
Former Good Morning Britain lead Ben had his final show on February 23 and is leaving his ‘on-screen wife’ Kate Garraway after nearly 20 years
They insisted instead that it was the ability to spend more time with family, over a big money payday, that finally sealed the deal.
The news was confirmed via a bespoke promo on This Morning’s Twitter, featuring just Ben.
He walked down the familiar This Morning production corridor and placing a new photo of Cat on the wall, before turning to the camera as the photo comes to life.
Cat said: ‘This Morning is a national institution. Whenever it’s on, it’s like having your friends over – funny, smart, silly, heartfelt, informative and joyful – like all the greatest friendships!…
‘This Morning is and always will be the viewer’s show. Ben and I both know how much people love it, and with the help of an amazing team of people, we’re going to do our best to take care of it.’
Ben added: ‘This really feels like a very special moment for Cat and I to be part of the next chapter of This Morning. It’s an honour to be trusted with the reigns, join Alison and Dermot and all the team that work on and off screen and do such a great job…
‘For the last ten years I’ve been waking up with our ITV daytime audience on GMB and I now look forward to spending time with Cat…
‘Welcoming the viewers home after the school run or from their early morning routines, with a cup of tea and a mix of everything that makes This Morning so loved.’