This Morning presenter Cat Deeley branded a particular moment from her early career as “awful” as she returns to the popular ITV show alongside Ben Shephard following the summer break
Cat Deeley has reflected on an early stage of her career as she returns to This Morning today, September 7. Many may remember the presenter as a familiar face, alongside Ant and Dec, on SMTV Live, which ran from 1998 to 2003.
The programme featured a mix of sketches, competitions and challenges, alongside a line-up of children’s programmes and cartoons.
One of its most popular regular sketches was Chums, the trio’s spoof of the sitcom Friends. Reflecting on that period of her career, Cat believes they were “awful” and claimed the “ratings were so bad”.
She told The Times: “We should have probably been pulled off air. Our ratings were so bad.” According to the publication, however, the show attracted 2.5 million viewers at its peak, overtaking the established Saturday-morning programme Live & Kicking in 1999.
“We were awful,” she added. “But it’s only by being awful when you start off that you learn.”
Cat, Ant and Dec appeared in a reunion show for SMTV Live back in 2020, when the trio returned to the original studio where the programme was filmed and producers rebuilt the old set.
Previously discussing the reunion on Chris Moyles‘ Radio X show, she admitted there were tears all round.
“We all cried,” she shared. “I walked in and they were doing their interview and Dec was crying and I was like, ‘Ok you’re crying!’ and then at the end of my interview I was like [sobbing noise].”
The trio have reunited several times over the years, including when Ant and Dec pranked Cat for a segment on Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway.
In 2006, Cat moved to America, relocating to Los Angeles after landing the hosting role on the US version of So You Think You Can Dance.
She went on to spend around 15 years living in LA before returning to the UK in 2020. Four years later, she landed the role as one of This Morning’s presenters alongside Ben Shephard.
Reports at the time claimed viewing figures had plummeted since the pair took over. However, an ITV spokesperson said the show still reached around four million viewers a week across all platforms, including catch-up viewing.
This year, the channel also said that videos shared on This Morning’s Instagram account in 2026 had collected 399 million views so far.
“Everyone can see that the volume of people watching terrestrial telly is shrinking,” Ben told the aforementioned publication. “But the show has a life way beyond when we’re actually on air.”
“I’ve got mates in LA that see it all the time,” Cat added.
The pair said feedback from viewers is what they value most, with the show’s 2025 National Television Award win offering a major vote of confidence.
The victory came after the programme missed out on the gong for two years in a row, bringing its 13-year winning streak to an end.
The win “was a stamp of approval that we were doing OK”, Cat admitted.
This Morning airs weekdays from 10am on ITV and ITVX
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