Former ITV presenter Kate Thornton is making her return with a unique new show over a decade after her last hosting gig.
The 51-year-old star rose to fame as the original host of The X Factor until she was replaced by Dermot O’Leary after the third series in 2006 – a decision she previously described as ‘humiliating’.
She went onto appear on This Morning and Lorraine with presenting roles, and in recent years she’s delighted listeners on Greatest Hits Radio.
However, she’s not had a regular TV stint as a presenter for 12 years, but now she’s poised for an ITV comeback with her own programme based on the Royal Family.
She’s set to front The Royal Beat With Kate Thornton, as she speaks to royal experts about the current issues surrounding the monarchy.
Over the 10 episodes, which will each run for an hour, she’ll talk to everyone from former Palace insiders to royal newspaper editors.
The programme will hit the small screen next month, and Kate is ‘thrilled’ to be launching the new project.
She said: ‘I’m thrilled to be bringing The Royal Beat to ITV and ITVX at a time of incredible change for our Monarchy.
‘On every episode, we’ll be joined by those that work closest with the royal family to bring you genuine insight on the work they do and explore what really happens behind closed doors in the House of Windsor.’
She hopes that people tuning in will gain a ‘deeper understanding’ of the Royals, ‘the machine’ that supports them, and their significance to the UK.
She added: ‘I think viewers will come away with a deeper understanding of the family and the machine that sits behind it to better understand why the Royals mean so much to us as a nation.’
Since her regular relief presenter role on This Morning ended in 2012, she has made occasional TV appearances on the likes of The One Show, Richard Osman’s House of Games and last year’s series of The Hit List.
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Since leaving BBC Radio 2 in 2019, she’s fronted shows from Weekend Anthems, The UK Pop 40 and Saturday Afternoons on Greatest Hits Radio.