Loose Women’s Judi Love reveals she was ’emotional’ after making history on show’s all-black panel

Loose Women’s Judi Love has revealed that she was left ‘so emotional’ after being a part of the show’s first ever all-black panel in its 20-year history.

The comedian, 40, joined news presenter Charlene White, 40, actress Kéllé Bryan, 41, and singer Brenda Edwards, 51, for the historic episode of the ITV lunchtime show back in October, during Black History Month.

And in a new interview with PA, Judi spoke about how the weight of the moment wasn’t lost on her, as she also recalled the support she received from the public.

She said: ‘Being a part of history in representation with regards to having four black women, these amazing talented women, was such an emotional event.

‘I was so emotional because the fact this was such a big thing in 2020 made me realise how it was so different and how much it hadn’t been done…

‘And then it made me think of many other women of colour who have been in entertainment before me and they missed out on things because this wasn’t seen as something that viewers would watch, or it just wasn’t even thought about because of the demographics.’

Following the episode, Judi revealed how she was inundated with an abundance of messages from fans, who told her: ‘”Thank you, now my daughter or my son has someone to look at and think they can do that.”‘

Judi continued: ‘I don’t think people realise how much it affects someone’s dreams, or feeling like they are capable, when they don’t see someone that looks like them doing it and whether that is your ethnicity, whether that is your size, whether that is your cultural background, whether that is your disability, whether that is your sexuality, it really does make a difference in someone’s life.’ 

Viewers were left ‘gasping with excitement’ after ‘history was made’ with four black presenters joining the panel for debates for the first time ever. 

It came after ITV bosses found themselves at the centre of a race controversy when just one non-white anchor appeared on the channel during one day in October 2019.

Over the summer, the network’s director of television Kevin Lygo pledged to improve representation of minorities within 12 months. 

He said soaps and dramas such as Vera would be targeted, adding: ‘We will have more lead presenters, lead actors on screen. There aren’t enough leads in dramas. That we have got to work on.’

Their revamp follows ITV and its senior management being left embarrassed after it was pointed out by The Mail on Sunday in October 2019 that there was just one non-white anchor on the network.

The anchor in question was Nina Hossain, who hosts the ITV lunchtime news – a show that lasts just 24 minutes out of 18 hours of daily output.

A source at the channel said: ‘The bosses were irritated to see it in print but it made the right change. The staff, the shareholders and the viewers noticed it and the pressure to make the change has been significant. And it appears to have worked.’

This Morning, which is fronted by Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield, is now hosted by Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary on Fridays.

Meanwhile, former Friday hosts Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford present the popular ITV daytime show during the holidays.