ITV This Morning's Alison Hammond left in tears over emotional family tribute
Alison Hammond, Dermot O’Leary, Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard are lighting up our screens in the lead-up to Christmas on This Morning. During a heartwarming chat where they all shared their favourite gifts ever received, Alison revealed that the most meaningful gift she's ever had came from her co-host and friend Dermot and the entire This Morning team.
"My best present was last year when Dermot and the This Morning team got my mum’s name put on a seat at the Hippodrome Theatre in Birmingham," Alison shared. "It’s right at the front and it also says, "Maria, the most beautiful sound I’ve ever heard." It was the best present I’ve ever had. I did get emotional on the show. I’ll get to see it again this year when I’m back doing panto. It’s like I’m performing for my mum."
Alison’s mum Maria sadly passed away from liver and lung cancer in February 2020. At the time, Alison penned: "Today I dedicate Valentine’s Day to my beautiful, wonderful Mother Maria who passed away from liver and lung cancer. Yesterday my family and I celebrated her amazing life and laid her to rest in a beautiful ceremony she would have been proud of. Thank you mummy for giving me the strength to move forward in the knowledge that your ok and with God in Heaven now. I will always remember you and try and make you proud. I love you mum."
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Alison has previously spoken about how her mum was always central to her family’s Christmas celebrations. In a chat with OK in 2019, she said: "I’ll be honest, I just do the vegetables. My mum gets up at like 2am to cook a turkey. It's crazy. I'm not doing that. I need my beauty sleep! My favourite part of Christmas is waking up and seeing my son Aiden's face when he sees all the presents."
This year, she'll be hosting Christmas in her new home, with everyone chipping in. "I’m hosting Christmas for the first time in my new house, but everyone’s got a job to do. My sister’s doing the turkey, my nephew is doing the lamb and I’ll do all the veg," she shared.
She's not alone in planning a big family gathering. Ben Shephard, who turns 50 just before Christmas, has grand plans. "Because there’s so many of us, we’re having Christmas Day in the village hall. It’ll be a big lunch with all 26 of us," he said. Dermot O'Leary is also expecting a full house, while Cat Deeley knows it's all about the kids on Christmas Day. "Our usual Christmas Day involves getting up early because my boys are six and eight, so they’re true believers in the magic of Christmas," she said.
