Fathers' rights protesters take ITV's Loose Women off air

The commotion occurred during an item about Coleen Nolan's weight loss

ITV show Loose Women was briefly taken off air on Wednesday after protesters interrupted the show.

The disruption occurred as Ruth Langsford was speaking to Coleen Nolan about her struggles with weight loss.

During the item, fathers' rights protesters were heard shouting: "No kids, no cash!"

The show cut to a standby screen with the Loose Women logo for around 20 seconds, as the shouting faded away.

Once back on air, Nolan joked: "Can we get back to me?"

Langsford said: "Those gentlemen have left us, so where were we?"

A message was immediately posted on the Loose Women Twitter account, reading: "Apologies for that small interruption."

An ITV spokesperson said: "The show was briefly interrupted today by three members of the audience who were making a peaceful protest."

The production team were widely praised on social media for dealing with the disruption quickly.

Singer and actress Michelle Heaton tweeted: "Wow Loose Women, love that you came back on air within seconds... well done!"

One viewer, Ian Wright, wrote: "Wanted to congratulate all on the panel & the background staff for the way they dealt with it."