They won't be the new Richard and Judy...

Jon Richardson and Lucy Beaumont  have lost out on their bid to be the new king and queen of daytime TV.

The married comics piloted a new format for Channel 4 – but instead the broadcaster has plumped for a rival show fronted by  BBC Breakfast host Stephanie McGovern 

The Steph Show will start in the spring and feature a different guest co-host each week for ‘a lively look at the topics of the day, as well as consumer affairs, fun features and lots of interaction with the viewers’

McGovern said: ‘I’m really chuffed to be creating my own live show with Channel 4 in Leeds. It’s going to be nerve-wracking, but there’s nothing I love more than finding out what makes people tick, whether it’s a famous face or someone we haven’t met yet who has a cracking story to tell. This is a dream come true for me and I can’t wait to get started next year. Just a small matter of having a baby first!’

The show will come from Channel 4’s new Leeds base – opened as part of a move to make the broadcaster less London-centric.

Ben Wicks from programme-makers Expectation said he hoped the show would be 'as channel defining as The Big Breakfast and TFI Friday once were'.

A third pilot, fronted by Susan Calman and Rick Edwards, was also in the running for the daily slot according to trade website Broadcast, but rejected in favour of The Steph Show.

Richardson and Beaumont have previously appeared together in the documentary Jon Richardson: How To Survive The End Of The World, and several episodes of the panel show Jon Richardson: Ultimate Worrier. They are also making a Dave sitcom Meet The Richardsons,  a fictionalised version of their real life.

Published: 19 Oct 2019