A tax tribunal has ruled that Lorraine Kelly was in fact playing the role “of a friendly, chatty and fun personality” each morning on ITV.
Moreover, Judge Jennifer Dean ruled that this description was that of a “theatrical artist”, as reported by the BBC.
The result meant that payments to the award-winning TV presenter’s agent were allowed as a tax deductible expense, winning the case.
The ruling also stated: “We do not accept Ms Kelly simply appeared as herself, we were satisfied that Ms Kelly presents a persona of herself.”
The first tier tax tribunal came after the Scottish star received a tax and national insurance bill of £1.2m.
Following this, the tribunal explained that when the 59-year-old “is contracted to perform live on air, she is public ‘Lorraine Kelly’”.
Adding: “She may not like the guest she interviews, she may not like the food she eats, she may not like the film she viewed but that is where the performance lies.”
ACTING: It was argued that Lorraine plays a ‘persona’ of herself (Pic: ITV)
WINNER: Lorraine was honoured with the most prestigious award at RTS (Pic: Lia Toby/WENN.com)
Kelly backed her argument with witness statements she made at the tribunal.
The ITV presenter argued that she was not an ITV employee but was actually a freelancer.
She explained she decided her own hours for the TV show Lorraine, also arguing that the show is pulled off air if a breaking news story occurs.
THEATRE: Lorraine was found to be a ‘theatrical artist’ (Pic: ITV)
EXPERT: Lorraine has been in the TV industry for over 35 years (Pic: Lia Toby/WENN.com)
Lorraine had been awarded the Outstanding Contribution to British Television Award at Tuesday night’s Radio and Television Society (RTS) Awards.
And she boasts a 35-year long career in breakfast television, working on shows including GMTV and Good Morning Britain.
Lorraine continues tomorrow at 8.30am on ITV.
