Christine Bleakley biography: Frank Lampard was told she was ‘too good for a footballer’

According to the new biography, which examines the personal and professional relationship between Bleakley and her Daybreak co-host Adrian Chiles, the Chelsea midfielder was told by Piers Morgan that the Co Down woman was too good for him.

The anecdote is recalled in Presenting Adrian And Christine, described by author Henry Lightfoot as “the hottest team on television”.

Lightfoot recounts how Morgan was approached by Lampard at the Pride of Britain Awards and asked if he knew Bleakley.

Morgan, who ominously introduced Sir Paul McCartney and Heather Mills, told Lampard that Bleakley was “brainy, funny, and as you can see, very pretty and so, as such, much too good for a Chelsea footballer”.

The warning, however, failed to deter Lampard and the couple began dating not long after their introduction.

The book also examines the respective careers of both Bleakley and Birmingham man Chiles, including her rise from a runner at BBC Northern Ireland to prime-time television host, the rumours surrounding the friendship between Bleakley and Chiles, and their much-publicised defection from the BBC’s One Show to ITV’s Daybreak.

Although Chiles had been suspicious of Bleakley when she first took over from Myleene Klass on The One Show sofa, thinking her a “dippy, nice-looking bird”, and Bleakley in turn thought him “miserable”, the pair soon became good friends.

However, their relationship came under scrutiny when Chiles split from his wife, Woman’s Hour presenter Jane Garvey, in 2008, prompting tabloid rumours of an affair.

Speaking of those rumours, Bleakley said: “I was horrified when people started saying that Adrian and I were having an affair, but for some reason it got legs and started galloping.

“He is like my brother. We can fight and then everything’s forgiven in a few minutes.

“These journalists can’t accept anything ordinary.

“You’ve got to hate each other or be jumping into bed.

“Until all that started, I’d never seen my name printed outside the Belfast Telegraph.”

The unauthorised biography describes Chiles’ dissatisfaction at the BBC’s decision to bring Chris Evans onboard as part of The One Show team and his subsequent departure from the corporation last year.

This was soon followed by Bleakley’s defection, despite saying previously she was happy to remain at the BBC.

While slightly glossing over the poor ratings of Daybreak when it launched last autumn, the book concludes that the show’s two presenters have since settled into their jobs and that viewing figures have risen.

Presenting Adrian And Christine by Henry Lightfoot is published by John Blake Publishing.