Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby on Love Island
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This Morning’s 30 best moments

Trip down memory lane to mark show's 30th birthday

It’s hard to remember a time before This Morning burst onto our screens, in 1988.

Daytime telly wasn’t really a thing, beyond dreary educational kids’ shows, snooker and cricket coverage, and political party conferences.

Some 30 years later and ITV’s flagship weekday show has undeniably redefined the TV landscape.

So, to mark its 30th anniversary, we’ve gone back through the archives and brought you This Morning’s 30 Best Bits.

30 — Beef-dunking

The moment that made This Morning an innuendo hub for ever. Blame Fern Britton.

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29 — John Leslie’s sudden departure

There one day, gone the next. A tell-all book by Ulrika Jonsson and This Morning host John Leslie was abruptly taken off air, despite denying the allegations.

john-leslie on This Morning
John Leslie as a guest in July 2018 (Credit: ITV)

28 — Breast examinations

Resident doctor Chris Steele has performed many health checks of a highly personal nature on the show.

So by the time it came to a breast examination in 2015, there was no attempt to mask anyone’s modesty.

Dr Chris explains the breast examination to Amanda Holden (Credit: ITV)

27 — Weather map streaker

The floating weather map on Liverpool’s Albert Dock, the series’ first home, was always going to be a target for pranksters. So it proved, with a naked streaker.

26 — The Asparamancer

Only This Morning could have a regular feature with a woman who predicts the future by tossing asparagus tips in the air.

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25— Holly’s psychic bananas

Not one to be outdone by fortune-telling fruit and veg, Holly Willoughby introduced her psychic bananas to the show.

And they proved weirdly prophetic. The Duchess of Cambridge, for example, would give birth in 2018 to a boy, as Holly foretold.

That’s us convinced.

Holly with her psychic bananas (Credit: ITV)

24 — George Michael

The show had such an impact on pop star George Michael that he pledged £50,000 to charter two plane-loads of kids to Lapland for Christmas.

He’d wanted to remain anonymous, but hosts Richard and Judy wouldn’t hear of it and got him on the show on the phone the next day.

23 — “I gave up men to have sex with ghosts”

It might be the most “This Morning” caption and interview ever. And really, no explanation can do this one justice.

Woman gave up men to have sex with ghosts (Credit: ITV)

22 — Testicular cancer checks

Alexander Armstrong was the willing guinea pig for Dr Chris on one of the show’s many live testicular cancer checks.

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21 — Dog yoga

This Morning introduced the nation to dog yoga.

It was all going so well, right up until the point a shih tzu cross named “Benji the humper” broke rank from his owner and got jiggy with Maltese terrier Robbie.

As Phillip Schofield said: “I’m not entirely sure what that position was but I know what it was becoming.”

This Morning welcomes dog yoga (Credit: ITV)

20 — Spice Girls

The very last performance on TV by the Spice Girls as a five-piece was on This Morning.

Do whatever you will with that information.

19 — Dog food

Yes, this is Phillip Schofield tucking into dog food, while interviewing a man whose job it is to do that very thing, testing different varieties for quality control.

Co-host Christine Bleakley’s face speaks for all of us here.

Schofe tucks into a dog’s dinner (Credit: ITV)

18 — Kim Woodburn

Fresh from her explosive stint in the Celebrity Big Brother house, the How Clean Is Your House star took her place on the usually sedate This Morning sofa.

Within minutes, though, she was warning Phil and Holly: “Don’t mess with me.”

Even now, no one is quite sure why, or what the hosts had done to upset her.

Confrontational Kim on the sofa (Credit: ITV)

17 — Off-grid parenting

The producers probably thought it was a good idea to book Adele and Matt Allen, who believe in a no-rules structure for their kids.

Right up until their youngest child urinated on the carpet, that is.

Off-grid family (Credit: ITV)

16 — Katie Hopkins

The former Apprentice contestant found a niche on This Morning as she carved out a career courting controversy.

It backfired somewhat when she declared that children named after places were common as muck, only for Phillip and Holly to point out she has a child named India.

Regular guest Katie (Credit: ITV)

15 — Viagra

Three couples were sent off to road-test viagra, with Judy Finnigan announcing: “The pills have gone down and now we will see what comes up.”

We’ll leave the rest to your imagination.

14 — Noel Edmonds

Mr Blobby’s former sidekick was widely criticised for claiming negative thoughts can cause cancer, in a controversial interview.

Noel caused a stir (Credit: ITV)

13 — Chippendales

Just minutes before Zippy, George and the rest of the Rainbow gang went on air, the Chippendales sent pulses racing across the land with an X-rated performance that flouted daytime TV rules.

12 — Ali G

Once voted the most cringe-worthy TV moment ever, Richard Madeley went full-on Ali G opposite “me Judy”, to her obvious horror.

So we’ll not dwell on that any further.

Richard as Ali G (Credit: ITV)

11 — Peter Kay

The comedian had Ruth Langsford doubled over in hysterics after calling his mutt’s private parts a “dog’s lipstick”.

Eamonn Holmes was left baffled. We presume she’s since explained it to him.

Peter on the show (Credit: ITV)

10 — World’s biggest boobs

Chelsea Charms jetted in from the US to show off her larger-than-life assets, her 164XXX breasts.

Chelsea with a stunned Phillip (Credit: Twitter @schofe)

9 — Prostate cancer checks

Before he joined EastEnders, Richard Blackwood took one for the team by undergoing a check for prostate cancer, live on the show, from Dr Chris to raise awareness.

Dr Chris examines Richard (Credit: ITV)

8 — Schofield’s paedophile list

Phillip Schofield was reprimanded after he ambushed David Cameron by passing the then Prime Minister a list of accused paedophiles.

Phillip passes the list to the PM (Credit: ITV)

7 — Kerry Katona

The now infamous segment saw the pop star worrying viewers and hosts alike with her slurred speech, a fact she attributed to medication for bipolar.

Kerry left viewers concerned (Credit: ITV)

6 — Knife-throwing

Yana Rodianova was left with a gashed head when then-partner Jayde Hanson misdirected a knife during their circus act.

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5 — Brenda Blethyn

The Vera actress’s dog Jack got a little bit too amorous with his owner during a hilarious interview, made even funnier by the fact she didn’t know they were still on air.

Jack takes a liking to Brenda (Credit: ITV)

4 — Bondage for Beginners

Phillip Schofield road-testing nipple clamps. Classic This Morning.

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3 — The naked chef

Gino D’Acampo vowed to cook naked if This Morning won a National TV Award in 2011.

He was good to his word…

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2 — Attack of the giggles

There are simply too many moments of Phil and Holly getting the giggles.

They’re all brilliant. Here is just one.

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1 — The NTA hangover

The morning after the night before, in 2016, when This Morning won another NTA, is legendary.

Wearing the same outfits as the previous evening, the hosts staggered in to the studio and somehow got through presenting all two hours.

That in itself is worth an award.

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What’s your favourite This Morning moment? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think!


Nancy Brown
Associate Editor

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