Holly Willoughby was missing from This Morning on Monday as she takes a break from daytime TV to film a BBC show.
Phillip Schofield was joined by presenter Rochelle Humes as he hosted the ITV daytime show, but did not initially address Holly’s absence.
As the programme opened, Phillip and Rochelle sat side-by-side and interviewed a viral internet skater before explaining Holly's whereabouts.
After the initial interview, Phillip turned to the camera and said: “Rochelle is here, as you can see. Keeping Holly’s seat warm. She’s off with the Ice Man, making a show at the moment.”
“Can’t wait to hang out,” said Rochelle. “Keeping her seat warm.”
This comes after Holly Willoughby was given two weeks off ITV's This Morning - so she can present Wim Hof’s Superstar Survival alongside comedian Lee Mack.
Superstar Survival will see a whole host of famous faces take on Europe's harshest conditions in a bid to tackle their demons.
Holly will fly back to the UK at the weekends to film Dancing On Ice alongside Phillip.
A source told The Sun of Holly’s decision to take a break from This Morning: "Holly loved I’m a Celeb so much it gave her the confidence to strike out on her own and do more mainstream solo TV projects.
"Holly did an excellent job filling in for Ant and was one of the highlights of the show that year.
"She has high career ambitions and is starting the year as she means to go on."
The insider added: "However, she absolutely loves This Morning and her on-screen partnership with Phillip, so isn’t going anywhere long-term. She’s just grateful ITV bosses are giving her the freedom to do her own projects."
Holly has denied claims she intends to leave This Morning, saying she feels “very lucky” to be a part of it.
"The show changes so much, I think that’s the beauty of This Morning," she said.
"Recently it’s had the highest ratings it’s had in 15 years. It’s doing really, really well which is extraordinary for a show that’s been around for as long as it has. And I think because it changes and it evolves and it adapts."
She added: "But I think that show has something to teach us a little bit; as long as we keep evolving and changing and moving on and happy to flow with things."
This Morning airs weekdays at 10am on ITV and ITV Hub.
