Sofa, so…Good Morning Britain?
Twenty four hours after the launch of its new flagship breakfast show Good Morning Britain, ITV bosses have bowed to popular demand by liberating leggy Susanna Reid from behind her desk.
Good Morning’s producers’ quick thinking saw them ditch the desk for a cream-coloured sofa today, so eBay, the biggest online marketplace, has teamed up with former BBC presenter Jane Renton and etiquette guru William Hanson to recommend the best sofa for showing off the Strictly star’s perfect pins.
Presentation expert Jane explained: “The desk harked back to a more formal time where presenters had a barrier between them and the audience and that doesn’t work in the age of citizen journalism. Putting the presenters on sofa is much more open, but pick your sofa with care.
“If presenters don’t push their rear to the back of the sofa, they loll and that suggests a lack of energy and authority. That means you need firm upholstery and a seat that’s not too deep. It should be at a height that allows presenters to lean forward and make eye contact and with a low back so it doesn’t loom over the presenter and dominate the viewer’s eyeline.”
'The Bluffer's Guide to Etiquette' author William added: “Breakfast TV sofas are always notoriously uncomfortable, but it is perfectly possible to perfect one's posture.
“The middle of the sofa is best avoided – indeed as it should be for any type of chair – as it causes our spines to relax more easily than sitting on the front part of the seat, and the edge is fine as our spines are more able to stay straight for longer.
“For ladies like Ms Reid, legs should be kept in an elegant manner – knees and ankles together, if crossed. The old finishing school way of sitting was with one ankle resting on the shin, this elongates the legs and perhaps Miss Reid should do this as it may appeal to those slightly more lecherous viewers of Good Morning Britain.”
There are nearly 50,000 new sofas available on eBay.co.uk right now, from the traditional red used by Good Morning Britain’s predecessor, Daybreak, to the cream one that made its debut this morning.
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS
eBay delivers one of the world’s largest online marketplaces to customers via any connected device, connecting people with the things they need and love. Founded in 1995 and opening in the UK in 1999, eBay has more than 18 million unique visitors per a month in the UK and Ireland. Around 70% of listings are for new, fixed-price items and the UK site is home to more than 100 high street brands and retailers.
CONTACTS
Naomi Finn or Yasmin Khostovan at Launch PR – 020 7758 3900 or ebay@launchpr.co.uk.