‘A worthy successor!’ Kate Garraway wins over viewers as she hosts her first Life Stories with John Barnes after taking over the role from Piers Morgan
Kate Garraway impressed viewers on Thursday night as they tuned in to watch her first Life Stories interview on ITV, after taking over the role from Piers Morgan.
The host, 54, was called a ‘worthy successor’ as she interviewed John Barnes about his iconic football career.
Fans of the show praised Kate for being ‘refreshing, professional, witty and confident’ as she quizzed John, 58, about his rise to fame and becoming one of the greatest players in Liverpool FC’s history.
Kate Garraway impressed viewers on Thursday night as they tuned in to watch her first Life Stories interview on ITV since taking over the role from Piers Morgan
Taking to Twitter, one wrote: ‘Great first Life Stories Kate! You are a worthy successor xxx’, while another viewer added: ‘@piersmorgan You gave Life Stories to the best person mate. @kategarraway’s doing a fabulous first show.’
‘Just finished watching Kate Garraway’s Life Stories and how refreshing was she, professional, witty and confident, so much better than that ego maniac Piers Morgan’, another chimed.
‘Kate deserves praise for life stories she has done amazing never been a fan of john but his life has been interesting from his perspective and not media,’ typed a viewer.
Wishing her the best: Ahead of the show Piers took to social media to wish Kate good luck. He wrote: ‘Good luck to @kategarraway who hosts her first Life Stories show tonight’
Impressed: The host, 54, was called a ‘worthy successor’ as she interviewed John Barnes about his iconic football career
Wow! Fans of the show praised Kate for being ‘refreshing, professional, witty and confident’ as she quizzed John, 58, about his rise to fame and becoming one of the greatest players
Good watch: Taking to Twitter, one said: ‘Great first Life Stories Kate! You are a worthy successor’, while another added: ‘@piersmorgan You gave Life Stories to the best person mate’
Another said: ‘You’re mashing Kate Garraway life stories well done xx’.
While the response was mainly positive, some viewers were unimpressed and called for Piers to be brought back.
One wrote: ‘Awful show, no probing questions, repeated multiple times his awful rap. No thanks rather watch a shopping channel.’
Hitting the microphone: Some viewers didn’t like John’s ‘awful rapping’
‘No probing questions: While the response was mainly positive, some viewers were unimpressed and called for Piers to be brought back
‘How patronising and sickly sweet was KG interviewing John Barnes. Bring back Piers Morgan,’ said another.
Ahead of the show Piers took to social media to wish Kate good luck. He wrote: ‘Good luck to @kategarraway who hosts her first Life Stories show tonight.
‘As I told Kate today, it does feel a bit weird handing over the reins of a show I presented for so long, but at least it’s to someone I love! Wish her all the very best. Airs on ITV @ 9pm.’
Stepping down: ‘As I told Kate today, it does feel a bit weird handing over the reins of a show I presented for so long, but at least it’s to someone I love!,’ Piers wrote on Twitter
During the show, John recalled how he would often go out partying before a big game and it was ‘fine’ to be sick on the side of the pitch if you had a hangover.
At one particularly raucous bash, John told the host, 54, how he transformed into pop icon Tina Turner, donning fishnet tights, a cowboy hat and a little fur coat.
He said: ‘There was the stockings just below the skirt with the garter belt, and the wig, the make-up.
‘During the night I had some close scares because after people got drunk they really didn’t know it was John Barnes.
‘If you’re in the toilet with a lot of drunk men and you were fairly attractive because I was a little bit slimmer then.’
Daring: During the show, John recalled how he would often go out partying before a big game and it was ‘fine’ to be sick on the side of the pitch if you had a hangover
Disco diva: At one particularly raucous bash, John told the host, 54, how he transformed into pop icon Tina (pictured), donning fishnet tights, a cowboy hat and a little fur coat
John had training the next day and said: ‘I didn’t have to turn up as Tina Turner because I could take my tights off and I would go in the skirt and the boots.
‘It was fine, though, because Kenny Dalglish was with us and he was the manager. You could get away with anything if you were a good footballer.’
John went on to say he would be celebrating most nights during the late Eighties and early Nineties.
Legend: John went on to say he would be celebrating most nights during the late Eighties and early Nineties and could get away with ‘anything’ because he was a good player (1988)
The retired Liverpool player told Kate: ‘In the late Eighties into the early Nineties we were celebrating most nights. It got messy from an alcoholic point of view for a lot of the big drinkers.
‘But of course you couldn’t make excuses to not come into training and play properly.
‘If you want to be sick on the side of the pitch because you’ve drunk too much, that’s fine.
Party boy: The retired Liverpool player tells Kate: ‘In the late Eighties into the early Nineties we were celebrating most nights. It got messy from an alcoholic point of view’
‘Our Christmas parties were fancy dress. It would go on until maybe eight or nine in the morning, then you just go in fancy dress straight to training. You’d come in your Mickey Mouse costume, or whatever it was.’
John debuted for England in 1983 and in 1987 joined Liverpool for £2million and played till 1997.
During the interview, John spoke about how he still has ‘irrational guilt’ about the Hillsborough disaster which took place during the 1989 semi-final with Nottingham Forest.
97 fans died and 766 were injured during the fatal human crush intwo standing-only central pens.
John said: ‘At the time it was strange. There were always games where fans seemed squashed, because you have barriers.
‘So when I saw them just before we came off and in fact, they have this iconic picture of two Liverpool fans, girls we’d known, and they’re squashed and I thought “that looks uncomfortable”.
‘We went into the players’ lounge and you can see the pitch, that’s when I realised how terrible it was.
‘We saw bodies, people on stretchers. You see little kids and think about your children.
‘Then of course, the irrational guilt, you know, feeling that they’ve come to watch me play they’re not going home.’
Kate Garraway’s Life Stories continues next Thursday on ITV at 9pm.
Devastating: During the interview, John spoke about how he still has ‘irrational guilt’ about the Hillsborough disaster in 1989
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