Fern Britton has just revealed that she won't be back on This Morning until after Christmas. Phillip Schofield and Ruth Langsford are currently hosting the show, as Fern is still in Cuba after completing a mammoth charity cycle race. However, she's just spoken live on the show from Havana to talk about the race – but has also revealed that she's now taking a long break. "I've decided to take three weeks off to be a proper mummy at home," she said. "I'm absolutely fine and dandy and there's no problem." However, we've heard whisperings that this isn't quite the case. Apparently ITV are none too pleased with Fern, and feel that she's dropped them in it by refusing to come back to work until after Christmas, despite being scheduled to present. Fern, who has just signed up to the show for another three years, is thought to have thrown the show into turmoil with her actions and Ruth, who usually presents with husband Eamonn Holmes on a Friday, has been drafted in at the last minute to cover. "No one understands why Fern isn't coming back until after Christmas," a This Morning insider tells heatworld. "It's caused a lot of trouble because she is on the rota and expected in. It wasn't pre-planned at all. It was a last-minute thing and she has dropped the show right in it. They are not happy." It's definitely been a busy year for Fern – the gastric band scandal, the explosive autobiography, the cycle race... so we're not surprised if she's just too knackered to work, but we can see why it might not go down well with her bosses. We're not sure the Big Cheese would let us get away with such behaviour!
Fern Britton latest!