Alison Hammond's BBC show axed
Alison Hammond's interview series Big Weekender won't return for a second run of episodes.
Alison Hammond's Big Weekender has been axed.
The 50-year-old presenter's six-part series saw her stay with celebrities including Sir Lenny Henry, Luke Evans, Mel B and Perrie Edwards to talk about their lives and careers, but it wasn't a ratings success and now the BBC have confirmed they have no plans for more episodes.
A BBC spokesman said: “We are proud of the series and loved working with Alison.
“Whilst there are currently no plans for any new episodes we are looking forward to working with her again in the future.”
The blow comes just a month after Alison renewed her contract on This Morning amid speculation linking her to one of the vacant hosting slots on Strictly Come Dancing.
A source told The Sun newspaper: “Alison is a huge talent and no one was surprised she’s being looked at for Strictly.
“But she’s very happy at This Morning so, as far as anyone knows, has no intention to quit to take on the dance show — but there may need to be some juggling of the schedule.”
Alison is said to be one of 10 stars set to screen test to replace Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman on Strictly, with Bradley Walsh, Alex Jones and Alan Carr the frontrunners.
But they will face competition for the gig from Rylan Clark, Rob Rinder, Zoe Ball, Holly Willoughby, Amanda Holden and Angela Scanlon.
A source said: “Ultimately, no one is bigger than the show so whichever lucky pair land the jobs will be the ones who the BBC think will be the perfect accompaniment to the series.”
Meanwhile, Great British Bake Off host Alison recently hit back at suggestions that she is on TV too often.
Asked if she is concerned about overexposure, Alison told The Guardian newspaper: "No. If I need to rest up or a job doesn't appeal, I won't do it. I'm good at saying no. I turn down 10 things per day, no exaggeration.
"It looks like I'm on TV a lot, sure, but I stand out partly because it's still not the norm to see a Black woman doing this. I don't want to bring race into it but no one says that about Davina (McCall) or Ant and Dec.
"I've worked hard for 22 years to get here. That woman on TikTok is allowed her opinion. It keeps me grounded. I'm not a national treasure. I'm just me, doing a job that I adore to the best of my ability, trying to be better than I was yesterday."
Alison - who found fame after appearing on Big Brother back in 2002 - finds it easy to relate to the contestants on GBBO given her own background in reality TV.
The For the Love of Dogs host said: "I was a contestant on Big Brother, in the jungle (on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!), even on Celebrity Bake Off. I know what they're going through."
