Breaking news out of Studio 1A: The beleaguered “Today” show dressing rooms are finally getting a makeover.
“We are [upgrading them]!” Hoda Kotb revealed to Pvnew exclusively at the fifth anniversary celebration of her co-host Jenna Bush Hager’s book club, Read with Jenna, at Bibliotheque in New York City on Thursday.
“We have four words for you: lipstick on a pig,” Bush Hager jokingly chimed in. “Just some wallpaper, some nice fake flowers.”
Last month, the NBC morning show’s dressing rooms came under scrutiny when Pvnew exclusively reported that Kelly Rowland had walked off the set because hers was not up to par.
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The former Destiny’s Child member left producers — and Kotb — scrambling, as she had been expected to fill in for Bush Hager as a guest host of “Today with Hoda & Jenna.”
“Kelly and her team were not happy. They did not like the dressing room, so they decided to pull her off the show, leaving [Kotb] without a guest host for the 10 a.m. hour,” a source shared with Pvnew.
After Rowland, 43, unceremoniously left, Rita Ora stepped in at the last minute.
Kotb, 59, and Bush Hager, 42, also told Pvnew some of the plans for sprucing up the now-infamous backstage quarters.
“We’re going to have fresh paint,” Kotb shared. “We’re going to add some new furniture and decoration and snacks. Maybe a mini fridge!”
The co-hosts then compared notes about their “closets.”
Bush Hager also noted that the show recently hosted Kate Winslet before acknowledging, “I know she was in one of those closets.”
As for her own office, the children’s book author shared that it is “one of those closets that they nicely cleaned out for me to be in.”
Kotb, for her part, divulged that Bush Hager was lucky because she had shared “that closet with Tamron Hall” at one point, adding, “We were both in it!”
The longtime pals argued that the cozy dimensions of the dressing rooms add charm to the “Today” show.
“We’re on the set,” Kotb explained. “No one is pretentious, and we’re like, ‘Welcome! Here’s a hug. Come sit on our couch.'”
Bush Hager seconded the sentiment, telling us, “We feel like it’s a warm place to come, and we hear from people, ‘We love being here!’ It’s New York City — everywhere we live is small!”
One thing that wasn’t small was the former first daughter’s book club party, which brought out fellow authors including Dolly Alderton, Emma Straub and Tara Conklin.
“I’m so thrilled [with the success], but I also love to read,” she said, “and I feel like when you’re sharing what you love, things like this can happen.”
