More and more TV channels are using popular social media personalities to host or appear in established shows, hoping to draw in a wider audience.
And now it seems Blue Peter will swap one influencer for another.
TikTok star Kyle Thomas, with an impressive 34 million followers, is replacing Joel Mawhinney as the new face of the Mail on Sunday. Mawhinney stepped down from the role earlier this year, and Thomas brings a substantial following of his own – 16 million on TikTok.
According to sources within the BBC, attracting new, young talent these days isn’t primarily about skill – it’s about how many viewers they already have. The goal is to gain an existing audience right away.
Thomas, a 21-year-old from Lisburn, Northern Ireland, has gained a large following – over 1.3 million on Instagram – by sharing posts about fascinating animals.
Someone involved with the show explained that Thomas is very enthusiastic about animals, which has made him popular on TikTok. Bringing even a small number of his TikTok followers to Blue Peter would make him a great addition to the show.
Thomas is known for appearing on the CBBC show, where he demonstrated that even insects and spiders can be appealing. However, his mother, Zena Foord, caused a stir when she was found guilty of illegally bringing a capybara – a very large rodent – from England to Northern Ireland. Thomas often shared pictures and videos of the animal online.
Thomas gave his capybara the name Queen Elizabeth and enjoyed dressing it in jewelry, tiaras, and dresses. Sadly, the capybara became sick soon after coming to live with the family and eventually passed away.
Mawhinney, 28, from Bangor, Co Down, announced he would leave Blue Peter earlier this year.
People were worried that Shini Muthukrishnan, 25, who co-hosted with Mawhinney and is his girlfriend, might also leave, but so far she hasn’t.
The show isn’t as popular as it was in its prime during the early 1970s, when John Noakes, Peter Purves, and Valerie Singleton hosted it.
Back then, on BBC1, the TV audience could hit an impressive eight million viewers.
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2026-04-26 00:04