EXCLUSIVE: Beaming Jane McDonald is welcomed into the Lowry Theatre as the countdown begins to the British Soap Awards – after replacing Phillip Schofield as host
Jane McDonald was seen arriving at the Lowry Theatre on Saturday morning ahead of hosting the British Soap Awards – where she will replace Phillip Schofield.
The singer, 60, had plenty to smile about as she was warmly welcomed at the entrance of the theatre in Salford.
The TV presenter cut a trendy figure in a white short-sleeve shirt and navy denim, which she teamed with a pair of cosy trainers.
Jane wore her brown tresses styled in a flawless blow-dry, as she was spotted hugging other members of the staff as she was helped to carry a large silver luggage in pictures exclusively obtained by MailOnline.
The songwriter looked glowing after she was recently hailed as the ‘perfect choice’ to replace Phillip Schofield – following ITV’s axe.
Looking radiant: Jane McDonad was captured arriving at the Lowery Theatre on Saturday morning ahead of hosting the British Soap Awards – where she will replace Phillip Schofield
Warm welcome: The singer had plenty to smile about as she was warmly welcomed at the entrance of the theatre in Salford
Chic: The TV presenter cut a trendy figure in a white short-sleeve shirt and navy denim jeans, which she teamed with a pair of cosy trainers
Operatic singer Jane will be stepping in to host the awards as the ceremony will air on Tuesday at 8pm on ITV1 and ITVX, after being recorded on Saturday.-
She was unveiled as Phillip’s replacement on Thursday after he announced he was quitting ITV in the wake of confessing to a scandalous affair with a This Morning colleague.
The English singer broke her silence on Thursday after it was officially announced she would be the new host for the long-waited annual awards.
She said: ‘Oh my god…..everyone knows how much I LOVE my soaps, this year I’ve been honoured to be mentioned in Corrie, EastEnders and Emmerdale, so this is just a dream come true.
‘I can’t wait to see all our wonderful soap nominees and celebrate all their hard work with them – roll on the awards, I can’t wait!’
Jane was a particularly low-key choice as ITV bosses no doubt want to make the replacement as seamless as possible.
The five biggest soaps – Coronation Street, Doctors, EastEnders, Emmerdale and Hollyoaks – will be battling it out to win recognition for their work over the past year.
Some of the biggest faces from all five soaps will be hitting the red carpet for the most star-studded and glamorous event in the soap calendar.
Stunning: Jane wore her brown tresses styled in a flawless blow-dry, as she was spotted hugging other members of the staff as she was helped to carry a large silver suitcase
People’s favourite: The songwriter looked glowing after she was recently hailed as the ‘perfect choice’ to replace Phillip Schofield – following ITV’s axe
Upcoming: Operatic singer Jane will be stepping in to host the awards as the ceremony will air on Tuesday at 8pm on ITV1 and ITVX – but the red carpet will take place on Saturday night
According to bookies odds, comedian Alan Carr had previously been the favourite to stand in as the host.
Alan, 46, has just 2/1 odds on being the host of the annual ceremony, with Joel Dommett following closely behind at 3/1.
Over the weekend, ITV confirmed the British Soap Awards will go ahead as planned after Phillip stepped down with just eight days’ notice amid his affair confession.
It comes after Phillip, 61, quit ITV and was dropped by his talent agency YMU after admitting to an affair with a young male This Morning colleague.
He confessed to having the ‘unwise but not illegal’ relationship with a man during his marriage to Stephanie Lowe, and previously denied the affair when asked about it by his agent.
Phillip was due to host the British Soap Awards next weekend after quitting This Morning last week, but confirmed in Friday’s statement that he has stepped down from all his ITV jobs, including the ceremony.
After his announcement, ITV said the British Soap Awards will still take place in Manchester on June 3.
After quitting This Morning, Phillip had still been set to host the Soap Awards for a 13th successive year, but he confirmed he was quitting ITV altogether last week.
Phillip admitted to an affair with a younger male colleague, which he claimed was ‘unwise but not illegal’, in a lengthy statement released, in which he also apologised to his wife and family.
Excited: ‘I can’t wait to see all our wonderful soap nominees and celebrate all their hard work with them – roll on the awards, I can’t wait!’, Jane gushed
The ‘unwise’ relationship took place during his nearly 30-year marriage to his wife Stephanie, 59, and Phillip said he was ‘so very sorry’ for being unfaithful.
Stephanie, who shares two kids Ruby, 27, and Molly, 29, with Phillip, issued a statement when her husband came out as gay in a moving This Morning segment in 2020.
Phillip stepped down from his This Morning hosting duties last weekend after more than 20 years on the airwaves before confirming the affair in a statement to the Daily Mail on Friday.
He has also resigned from ITV. He has also been dropped by his agents at YMU ‘with immediate effect’.
In a statement, the former ITV presenter said: ‘I am making this statement via the Daily Mail, to whom I have already apologised personally for misleading, through my lawyer who I also misled, about a story [sic] which they wanted to write about me a few days ago.
‘The first thing I want to say is: I am deeply sorry for having lied to them, and to many others about a relationship that I had with someone working on This Morning.
‘I did have a consensual on-off relationship with a younger male colleague at This Morning.
Axed: It comes after Phillip, 61, quit ITV and was dropped by his talent agency YMU after admitting to an affair with a young male This Morning colleague
Bombshell: He confessed to having the ‘unwise but not illegal’ relationship with a man during his marriage to Stephanie Lowe, and previously denied the affair when asked about it by his agent
‘Contrary to speculation, whilst I met the man when he was a teenager and was asked to help him to get into television, it was only after he started to work on the show that it became more than a just a friendship.
‘That relationship was unwise, but not illegal. It is now over…
‘I am painfully conscious that I have lied to my employers at ITV, to my colleagues and friends, to my agents, to the media and therefore the public and most importantly of all to my family. I am so very, very sorry, as I am for having been unfaithful to my wife…
‘I am resigning from ITV with immediate effect, expressing my immense gratitude to them for all the amazing opportunities that they have given me.
‘I will reflect on my very bad judgement in both participating in the relationship and then lying about it.’
After his statement, an ITV spokesman said: ‘We are deeply disappointed by the admissions of deceit made tonight by Phillip Schofield.
‘The relationships we have with those we work with are based on trust. Philip made assurances to us which he now acknowledges were untrue and we feel badly let down.
‘We accept his resignation from ITV and therefore can confirm that he will not be appearing on ITV as had previously been stated.’
Following his statement, Phillip has also parted company with his management team YMU after 35 years.
Mary Bekhait, the Group CEO of YMU Group, said: ‘Honesty and integrity are core values for YMU’s whole business, defining everything we do.
‘Talent management is a relationship based entirely on trust.
‘This week, we have learned important new information about our client Phillip Schofield.
‘These facts contradicted what Phillip had previously told YMU, as well as the external advisors we had brought in to support him.
‘As a result, on Thursday we agreed to part company with Phillip, with immediate effect.’
British Soap Awards 2023 Nominations
VIEWER-VOTED CATEGORIES
Best Leading Performer
Charlotte Jordan (Daisy Midgeley, Coronation Street)
Danielle Harold (Lola Pearce-Brown, EastEnders)
Shona McGarty (Whitney Dean, EastEnders)
Sally Dexter (Faith Dingle, Emmerdale)
Dominic Brunt (Paddy Dingle, Emmerdale)
Villain of the Year
Todd Boyce (Stephen Reid, Coronation Street)
Laura White (Princess Buchanan, Doctors)
Aaron Thiara (Ravi Gulati, EastEnders)
Michael Wildman (Al Chapman, Emmerdale)
Angus Castle-Doughty (Eric Foster, Hollyoaks)
Best Young Performer
Jude Riordan (Sam Blakeman, Coronation Street)
Lillia Turner (Lily Slater, EastEnders)
Huey Quinn (Kyle Winchester, Emmerdale)
Jayden Fox (Bobby Costello, Hollyoaks)
Best British Soap
Coronation Street
Doctors
EastEnders
Emmerdale
Hollyoaks
PANEL-VOTED CATEGORIES
Best Storyline
Daisy’s stalking hell (Coronation Street)
Valerie and the forged prescription (Doctors)
Loving and losing Lola (EastEnders)
Paddy’s suicide attempt (Emmerdale)
Incel Eric targets Mason and Maxine (Hollyoaks)
Scene of the Year
The acid attack (Coronation Street)
Hell is Empty – the explosion (Doctors)
Whitney and Zack say goodbye to Peach (EastEnders)
Paddy’s suicide attempt (Emmerdale)
Zoe tells abused Maxine “It’s not your fault” (Hollyoaks)
Best Comedy Performance
Maureen Lipman (Evelyn Plummer, Coronation Street)
Ian Midlane (Al Haskey, Doctors)
Jonny Freeman (Reiss Colwell, EastEnders)
Samantha Giles (Bernice Blackstock, Emmerdale)
Best Dramatic Performance
Charlotte Jordan (Daisy Midgeley, Coronation Street)
Chris Walker (Rob Hollins, Doctors)
Danielle Harold (Lola Pearce-Brown, EastEnders)
Jeff Hordley (Cain Dingle, Emmerdale)
Nikki Sanderson (Maxine Minniver, Hollyoaks)
Best Single Episode
Acid attack (Coronation Street)
‘Anything But Magnolia’ and ‘If Wishes Were Horses’ – Karen’s death (Doctors)
Goodbye Dot (EastEnders)
All-male man club episode (Emmerdale)
The Long Walk Home (Hollyoaks)
Best Newcomer
Channique Sterling-Brown (Dee-Dee Bailey, Coronation Street)
Kia Pegg (Scarlett Kiernan, Doctors)
Aaron Thiara (Ravi Gulati, EastEnders)
William Ash (Caleb Miligan, Emmerdale)
Anya Lawrence (Vicky Grant, Hollyoaks)
Best Family
The Platts (Coronation Street)
The Millars (Doctors)
The Slaters (EastEnders)
The Dingles (Emmerdale)
The McQueens (Hollyoaks)
Best On-Screen Partnership
David Neilson and Maureen Lipman (Roy Cropper and Evelyn Plummer, Coronation Street)
Chris Walker and Jan Pearson (Rob and Karen Hollins, Doctors)
Jamie Borthwick and Danielle Harold (Jay Brown and Lola Pearce-Brown, EastEnders)
Mark Charnock and Dominic Brunt (Marlon Dingle and Paddy Dingle, Emmerdale)
Richard Blackwood and Jamie Lomas (Felix Westwood and Warren Fox, Hollyoaks)
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