Richard Madeley pulls out of Good Morning Britain last minute throwing show into chaos

Richard Madeley's absence from Good Morning Britain's line-up on Tuesday sparked a flurry of last-minute changes, with Sean Fletcher leaping in to co-host with Kate Garraway.

As the show opened, Garraway promptly addressed the situation: "Good morning! Now if you were expecting to see Richard Madeley here, I think Richard Madeley was expecting to be here as well!"

"He's feeling a bit poorly this morning, so we've got lovely Sean, which is fantastic."

Garraway probed into how late Sean discovered he'd be stepping into Madeley's shoes, eliciting an admission from Fletcher that it was a sudden call to action.

He confessed: "So we wish Richard all the best, I get up in the morning and I log into the running order at home. I see my initial by all the stories that you would already have. Then I saw my initial on every other story," reports the Mirror.

"I thought there's a mistake, there's a typo!"

Realization dawned on Sean after re-examining the schedule and noticing the slew of missed calls that it was his time to take the helm beside Kate.

Sean remarked, with an air of humor: "Suddenly I realised, I had seven missed calls and I realised that something was up."

He expressed his enjoyment of hosting GMB, comparing it to jumping from the subs bench to playing on the pitch. In good spirits, Garraway added: "As you say, we wish Richard all the best. Hopefully, he'll be feeling better later today."

Adding to the light-hearted atmosphere, Garraway disclosed to viewers that pre-show, there was a comical concern among producers about whether Sean had brought a tie to wear for the programme.

Chuckling to himself, he remarked: "Yes, they put a tie on me and it was strobing! So literally as we were reading the headlines there I'm changing my tie."

Viewers of Good Morning Britain seem ecstatic about Sean taking the lead, with several expressing their desire for him to become a permanent fixture.

One enthusiastic viewer expressed their support, tweeting: "At last, @SeanFletcherTV is in the hot seat. Llongyfarchiadau Sean. I've been saying for ages to give you a chance in the main presenter's seat."

A different fan shared: "Great to see @SeanFletcherTV presenting today, he should definitely have more anchor slots and works well with @kategarraway".

Another hopeful viewer posted: "Wonderful to see @SeanFletcherTV love him alongside @kategarraway now I hope they may continue."

Delighted by the new arrangement, another admirer said: "Love @SeanFletcherTV good to see him as an anchor! Hope @richardm56 gets well soon."

Good Morning Britain continues weekdays on ITV from 6am.