8 months ago
18 Ben Shephard was left pretty emotional as he presented his final Good Morning Britain.
The beloved TV presenter, 49, was recently announced as one of two new hosts of This Morning, joining Cat Deeley as they replace Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby.
The announcement followed months of speculation over who would be permanently taking over on the This Morning sofa, with recent weeks seeing the likes of Rylan Clark and Josie Gibson stepping in.
As Ben moves over to This Morning, he’ll be departing Good Morning Britain after 10 years of presenting.
It was an overwhelming day for the presenter, with co-star Kate Garraway sharing some tributes as she said: ‘Some people couldn’t be here though, and did want to have the chance to say goodbye.’
As well as GMB stars Dr. Hilary, Laura Tobin and more, some West Ham legends also sent in well wishes for one of the Hammers’ biggest fans.
‘Ben, your last day mate. You was there on my last day as a West Ham player, so it’s only right to send you a message,’ said Mark Noble. ‘Have a great day mate, probably you’ll be crying instead of me this time. Love ya.’
‘That’s Mark Noble,’ Ben said, fighting back tears as Kate patted him on the shoulder. ‘I was with Mark, this day, we played Manchester City, it was his last game and he was incredibly emotional in that stadium.’
He added: ‘Wow, thank you… That’s amazing.’
Kate later joked: ‘We’ve got to get him sobbing by nine,’ while Ben admitted he was well on his way after the likes of Harry Redknapp send in videos for his last day.
‘I help it all goes well for you, Ben, you’re a top man,’ Harry said, while Laura Tobin added: ‘Can I just say, you brighten my day no matter the weather, because you are my sunshine. I treasure you more than a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Big kisses.’
Dr. Hilary said in his own tribute: ‘Ben, my good friend, what I wouldn’t give to be in the studio with you right now. Actually, I wouldn’t give very much at all, it’s rather nice here.
‘Be that as it may, I’ll be there in spirit!Seriously though, it’s been a fabulous privilege working with you. Over the years, we’ve had so much fun, we’ve played football in the old Arsenal studio, we’ve talked about all sorts of medical subjects, we went to Haiti six months after the earthquake, it’s been a privilege working with you, it really has.
‘I know that going onto This Morning, you’re going to absolutely smash it. Break a leg mate, keep in touch!’
Announcing his GMB departure, Ben had shared a picture alongside his co-stars, and wrote in his caption: ‘Ten years has flown by at GMB. I’ve loved every minute, (well not those minutes immediately after the alarm goes off at 3.30am 😳😩) but all the others have been incredible.
‘As have these amazing women I’ve been lucky enough to sit alongside, work with, laugh with and on the odd occasions drink with!’
He added: ‘I will miss working with them and the whole team – and I’m very grateful that they are just next door so that whenever I get nostalgic I know they aren’t too far away.’
Good Morning Britain airs weekdays at 6am on ITV1.
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