Alison Hammond (born 5 February 1975) is a British television personality and actress. She competed in the third series of the reality show Big Brother in 2002, in which she was the second housemate to be evicted. She has since become a presenter and reporter on ITV's This Morning (2002–present) and a co-presenter on the Channel 4 reality baking competition The Great British Bake Off (2023–present). In January 2024, it was announced that Hammond would take over For the Love of Dogs from Paul O'Grady, following his death in March 2023.

Hammond has also appeared on reality shows such as I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (2010), Celebrity Coach Trip (2012), Strictly Come Dancing (2014), Celebrity Masterchef (2014), and I Can See Your Voice (2021–2022). As an actress, Hammond has appeared in Palace Hill (1988–1990), Doctors (2002), and The Dumping Ground (2016).

Early and personal life

Hammond was born on 5 February 1975 to Jamaican parents and was raised in the north Birmingham district of Kingstanding alongside her two siblings. She attended Cardinal Wiseman School. Her mother had several jobs concurrently, including one as a manager for Tupperware. From the age of 11, Hammond participated in drama workshops run by Central Television, but lack of funds meant she was unable to attend drama school. She later moved to Hall Green in south Birmingham. She was previously married to Noureddine Boufaied and together the couple have one son, born in 2005.

Career

In 2002, Hammond competed on the third series of the Channel 4 reality series Big Brother. That same year, she appeared in an episode of the BBC soap opera Doctors in an acting role and also began presenting and reporting for ITV's This Morning. Hammond then appeared on many television programmes, including Celebrity Fit Club, Celebrities Under Pressure, and Big Star's Little Star. She has also appeared on Celebrity Stars in Their Eyes, performing as Nina Simone, Celebrity Ready Steady Cook, Daily Cooks Challenge, as a panellist on ITV's Loose Women, and as a presenter on the short-lived ITV Play channel. In 2004, Hammond played herself as a TV reporter in Christmas Lights opposite Robson Green. In 2008, Hammond was named as the face of online bingo site Crown Bingo and took part in live chats, voiced characters and can be heard as the bingo caller in the bingo room. In November 2010, Hammond became a contestant on the tenth series of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! and, on 28 November 2010, became the fourth contestant to leave the show.

In 2014, Hammond participated in the ninth series of Celebrity MasterChef on BBC One. She also participated in the twelfth series of Strictly Come Dancing in 2014 on BBC One. She partnered with 11th series' champion Aljaž Škorjanec. They were voted off in the seventh week of competition and finished 10th. On 19 November 2015, it was announced she would compete in the annual Strictly Christmas Special. Hammond made her Hollywood debut in the animated film Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018). In 2020, ITV announced a shake-up of This Morning presenters, with Hammond replacing Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford on a Friday, presenting alongside Dermot O'Leary. Hammond and O'Leary have since taken on the other days after the respective resignations of Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby in the summer and autumn of 2023 as part of a rotation of hosts.

In December 2020, Alison appeared as a celebrity guest on game show The Wheel on BBC One. She also played the Countess in the Sainsbury's 2022 Christmas advert. Hammond then hosted the 76th British Academy Film Awards with Richard E. Grant. It was announced in March 2023 that Hammond would be the new co-host of The Great British Bake Off, replacing Matt Lucas.

From April 2024 she has presented For the Love of Dogs, following the death of original presenter Paul O'Grady.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Note(s)
1988–1990	Palace Hill	Eskimo	Main role
1991	Chalkface	Alice	Episode: "Christmas Cheer"
1997	The Locksmith	WPC Leigh	Episode: "Coming Together"
2002	Big Brother	Herself	Contestant; 11th place
	Doctors	Danielle	Episode: "Tears of a Clown"
2002, 2004, 2006, 2019	Loose Women	Herself	Herself (2 episodes), guest panellist (2002, 2004)
2002–present	This Morning	Herself	Reporter and presenter (2002–2021), main presenter (2021–)
2003	Doctors	Theresa Holyoake	Episodes: "A Red Light Means Stop: Part 1" and "A Red Light Means Stop Part: 2"
2004	Celebrity Fit Club	Herself	Contestant
	Celebrity Stars in Their Eyes	Herself	Performed as Nina Simone
	Christmas Lights	Herself
2006–2007	ITV Play	Herself	This Morning Puzzlebook Quiz Show
2010	I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!	Herself	Contestant; 10th place
2012	Celebrity Coach Trip	Herself	Contestant
2012–2014	Big Brother's Bit On The Side	Herself	4 episodes
2013	Celebrity Big Brother	Herself	1 episode
2014	Celebrity MasterChef	Herself	Contestant
	Strictly Come Dancing	Herself	Contestant; 10th place
2016	The Dumping Ground	Rowena Spike	Episodes: "Lost and Found" and "Bear-Faced Liar"
2017	Sugar Free Farm	Herself	Participant
	Let's Sing and Dance	Herself	Participant
2018	The Time It Takes	Herself	Co-host
	Celebrity Haunted Mansion	Herself	Participant
	Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation	Frankenginger (voice)	Movie
2020	Celebs Go Dating	Herself	Series 8
	The Great Stand Up to Cancer Bake Off	Herself	Series 3
2021	I Can See Your Voice	Judge
	Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway	Herself	Series 17
2022	RuPaul's Drag Race UK	Guest judge	Series 4
	The Masked Singer: I'm a Celebrity Special	Herself	Performed as Witchetty Grub
	Alison Hammond In at the Rich End: The Riviera	Herself	Documentary
2023	The British Academy Film Awards	Reporter
2023–present	The Great British Bake Off	Co-host	Alongside Noel Fielding, replaced Matt Lucas
2024–present	Alison Hammond: For the Love of Dogs	Herself	Replaced Paul O'Grady
	Rob Beckett's Smart TV	Herself	Team captain
2025	Alison Hammond’s Big Weekend	Host	Upcoming six-part series

Guest appearances