Robin Roberts, the popular co-host on AMC’s Good Morning America has been going though quite a rough patch lately.

Her beloved mother recently passed away a few days ago, and just the day after she left GMA for an extended medical leave, as she goes through a complex and risky bone narrow transplant for a rare blood disorder.

Reportedly, Roberts will be off GMA for some 3-4 months as she recuperates, and ABC News has already announced the names of replacements while she’s gone.

Not surprisinglly, all of them are from the ABC News stable, such as Baba Wawa (AKA Barbara Walters), Diane Sawyer, Katie Couric (whose new afternoon talk show premering this month is produced by ABC) Elizabeth Vargas and Amy Robach.

Well almost all of them…

The one big surprise is the announcement that Oprah Winfrey will also be subbing for Roberts. When she will be on and and how often, wasn’t revealed. Assumedly that’s being worked out right now.

But this will mark Oprah’s return to network TV since she ended her talk show and, of course, will be a real ratings coup for GMA.

It will no doubt solidify their No.1 position in the network morning ratings, beating The Today Show, which has seen its ratings drop in recent months. and has gotten worse since they unceremoniously dumped Ann Curry (except for a temporary London Olympics ratings bump). And this comes on the heels of announced major staff layoffs on the show soon to take place.

This also makes it an interestng sitiuation now that Oprah will be going head to head against her close friend Gayle King on CBS’ This Morning. 

That’s show biz….