Those watching the rolling coverage of England women’s friendly against Ghana yesterday evening were shocked to see Laura Woods faint live on air. The presenter has now broken her silence and reassured fans that she is ok after collapsing in front of football pundits Ian Wright and Anita Asante.
In a post on Instagram just hours later - suggesting that she had been inundated with messages from concerned viewers - Laura wrote: "Gosh that was a bit weird. Sorry to worry everyone, I'm ok, the wonderful paramedics at Saints have said it's probably just a virus, just need a bit of rest and hydration.
"I'm really embarrassed that happened on TV, but a big thank you to my colleagues at ITV who have really looked after me tonight. And to Wrighty and Neets for catching me. And sorry again." She did not elaborate on her health further.
Laura, 38, had been interviewing Ian and Anita on ITV4 shortly before kick-off at St Mary's Stadium, Southampton, when she unexpectedly became ill. Those at home saw her fall forward and be quickly caught by an alarmed Ian and Anita, who were heard asking if she was ok.
The camera immediately cut to a commercial break, and when coverage resumed, Katie Shanahan was now standing in her place. “As you have probably noticed we don’t have the wonderful Laura Woods because she’s just been taken ill,” said the pro swimmer. "But she’s in very good hands so I’m stepping in at late notice."
Laura’s fiancé Adam Collard also gave a prompt update on how his partner was doing. "Laura is all ok and with the right people," the former Love Island star, 30, wrote on X. "Thank you for all of your kind messages."
© InstagramThe couple confirmed they were dating in October 2023, and became engaged in September 2024 after Adam proposed on a beach in Cornwall. They welcomed their first child a son called Leo - in January of this year.
Laura is a regular host for ITV and TNT Sports across their men's and women's football games. Both the Lionesses - who went on to win 2-0 - and ITV promptly posted wishing the star a speedy recovery.
© Alex Livesey - DanehouseThe mum-of-one opened up earlier this year to The Telegraph about her fears of getting "baby brain" during a live broadcast when she returned to screens in April. "I was worried that I would have lost some of my edge or sharpness," she confided. "I kept forgetting names, which started during pregnancy. It’s a thing that everyone talks about. You don’t think you’re going to get it.
"You get a bit of ‘baby brain’ and it’s hard when you’re presenting because a lot of the time stuff is thrown at you and you don’t see it before it goes live. It’s live TV, so you have to react. You have to be sharp… I was nervous about getting little kind of brain drop-outs. But I surprised myself. I wasn’t awful."
