ITV This Morning viewers say 'it's so odd' as Josie Gibson returns and replaces Alison Hammond

Viewers of This Morning have said 'it's odd' as Josie Gibson returned to front the programme on Friday (March 22). The 39-year-old, who has regularly presented the ITV daytime show over the years as a stand-in host, is currently stepping in to replace Alison Hammond.

Alison, who usually presents the programme every Friday alongside Dermot O'Leary, announced she is taking a month-long break from her hosting duties on the show whilst working on another TV project. It comes as Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard were announced as the main presenters for the remainder of the week back in February.

Ben and Cat officially made their first appearance as the show's new duo on Monday (March 11), replacing Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield who each quit their roles hosting the programme last year.

READ MORE: Amy Dowden told she's 'glowing' as she heads 'back on the dance floor'

But viewers have been divided on Holly and Phil's replacements so far. The former Good Morning Britain presenter and So You Think You Can Dance star's had never hosted the show together before, but had each had appearances in the months following Phillip's exit in May as Ben hosted with Holly, while Cat teamed up with Rylan Clark and Craig Doyle following Holly's exit in October.

Since Josie has returned to front the programme, some viewers have suggested that ITV bosses should have chosen her as one of the permanent replacements instead. Taking to X, formerly Twitter, during Friday's show, viewers were full of compliments for Dermot and Josie's presenting flair.

@daisycatcher wrote: "Love Dermot & Josie , perfect Friday presenting , light and fun . #thismorning," as @sammysandwch agreed: "#Thismorning So lovely to see Josie and Dermot back in the seats.