Could TV’s ‘Gold Dust’ couple Tess Daly and Vernon Kay be the answer to a major This Morning shake-up?

ITV are reportedly showing 'serious interest' in having 'gold dust' couple Tess Daly and Vernon Kay join This Morning.

Sources have reportedly insisted Tess and Vernon have the same 'effortless magic' that Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan brought to the show, and with Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard’s contracts said to come to an end soon, sources suggest Tess and Vernon might be what the show has been 'missing'.

Tess - who left Strictly Come Dancing in 2025 after 21 years hosting - and Vernon - who currently enjoys great success presenting his BBC Radio 2 show - have been married since 2003.

Sources said, "It was a total no-brainer the second they saw them on The One Show sofa. Execs have been sweet on Vernon for ages, but the pair's natural husband-and-wife banter made them realise exactly what This Morning has been missing.

"Tess and Vernon have that exact same effortless magic. Audiences are notoriously tough on new faces, but they completely fell in love with their northern charm."

While just rumours for now, it’s easy to see why there might be some merit behind them. This Morning has a precedent for thriving when a real-life married couple are at the wheel of the ship.

The pair, who have both enjoyed glittering careers and between them have worked on everything from SMTV Live to Children in Need and Family Fortunes, have actually only worked together a handful of times.

They hosted two seasons of the BBC’s Just the Two of Us, which saw celebrities team up with famous musicians to compete in a singing competition.

Apart from that, the couple presented a one-off special of The One Show in February of this year - and it was this that reportedly caught the attention of ITV bosses.

Richard and Judy hosted the show for 13 years, and Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes also hosted before the end of their marriage. Ruth, who worked on the show from 1999 to 2022, remains the programme’s longest-serving presenter.

Addressing the buzz around this potential coup for ITV, celebrity publicist Dermot McNamara told Woman it would be a smarter career move for Tess, while he's less sure on whether Vernon would go for it.

He said Tess is "synonymous with Strictly, but people may struggle to picture her outside that role. A move to This Morning would be a chance to prove she can lead a major live format beyond the ballroom.

"The irony is that she might want the job more than Vernon, but also feel safest doing it alongside him rather than stepping into a new partnership and the process that ensues, especially if you’re paired with someone you don’t usually cross paths with."

Is the cart getting put before the horse, though? What about Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard, who host the show Mondays to Thursdays, with Dermot O’Leary and Alison Hammond taking Fridays?

McNamara offered his take that Cat and Ben’s success might be the very thing that makes a shake-up plausible. He said, "Cat and Ben have acted as a firm hand on the wheel. They’ve steadied the ship, kept the show scandal-free and restored a sense of calm after a turbulent period.

"In many ways, This Morning is now in a place of safety and equilibrium, but that stability also creates an opportunity to rethink what comes next at some point - even if it is Cat and or Ben who decide it’s time to move on and explore other opportunities."

As for the couple themselves? No official statement or response has been made as of yet, but Tess has spoken about what she wants from a post-Strictly world.

She has said, per Woman, "I love working in television because I genuinely love people. As a viewer, I love anything authentically emotive that brings a tear to the eye. My goals are quite simple: to continue to do the work I enjoy and which fulfils me."

Tess and Vernon could be tempted by this offer because of a big change in their personal lives, too. Their eldest daughter, Phoebe, 21, recently moved to New York the nest and moved to New York and their youngest, Amber, will be turning 17 this May.