Holly Willoughby, who left This Morning last month, might be in line for a major new BBC post.
The 42-year-old broadcaster left the ITV daytime programme a few weeks ago, but speculation about her next major job is already circulating.
According to reports, the BBC wants her to reconnect with her Take Off co-star Bradley Walsh as a Gladiators host.
The popular 1990s game show will return to the Beeb early next year, followed by a second season, and producers are eager to get her on board with Bradley, 63, and his 35-year-old son Barney.
An insider told The Sun: ‘The BBC love Brad and Barney, but it’s also been proved Brad and Holly have an amazing dynamic as they featured together on the Beeb show Take Off.
‘Since Holly’s departure from This Morning, lots of channels and broadcasters have been thinking about what she could bring to their shows.
‘And as she’s such a big star, she’s a natural fit for a huge entertainment show, which the reboot of Gladiators unquestionably is.’
Holly is no stranger to the BBC, having previously worked on CBBC before hosting Take Off with Bradley and collaborating with Lee Mack on Freeze the Fear.
There were allegations late last year that the BBC was interested in bringing her in, but executives are content to ‘let the dust settle’ before commencing talks about bringing her in as the new Ulrika Jonsson, who headed the first Gladiators on ITV between 1992 and 2000.
The source added: ‘The Beeb will let the dust settle on her This Morning exit, and for the first series to run, before kicking off talks. But she’s an obvious choice to become the new Ulrika.’
She said in a statement on Instagram in October that it was a ‘difficult goodbye’ to This Morning, but she had made the decision for herself and her family.
Thanking her co-stars and viewers, she also wrote: ‘To everyone who has ever worked on the show over the years, thank you so so much. This is such a difficult goodbye, you are incredible and I forever will be proud of what we’ve done together. Thank you to everyone at ITV for being supportive. To every guest who has sat on our sofa, thank you.
‘Most of all, thank you to the wonderful viewers. You’ve been so loyal, so supportive and the very best company every day.’
