Vanessa Feltz has been a regular on This Morning for 33 years and appears as a news commentator and agony aunt
Vanessa Feltz has quit This Morning after 33 years.
The 63-year-old broadcaster has been a regular contributor to the ITV morning show but will be stepping away because of her commitment to her new Channel 5 show Vanessa, which will launch on 24 March at 12.45pm. The show is set to ‘rival’ ITV’s flagship morning show, currently presented by Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard.
Vanessa told the Daily Star newspaper: “I’ve been on ‘This Morning’ since 1992. It’s been a long time . But I’m now doing my own show and I can’t do both.” Vanessa praised the presenters and crew on ‘This Morning’ for being “so lovely” about her decision.
She added: “When I told everyone I wouldn’t be able to do the show anymore, they were lovely about it. I heard from Alison Hammond and Holly Willoughby immediately and the bosses were charming. I’ll miss working with them all.”
The veteran broadcaster has learned a lot from her time on the show.
She said: “I have learned lots of stuff on ‘This Morning’.
“When I first did it, I had never been on TV before. I didn’t know what was going on. I was bamboozled but theygave me a contract.”
And Vanessa “couldn’t be more excited” about her new talk show. She gushed: “This is a fantastic opportunity and I couldn’t be more excited. It feels marvellous.”
Vanessa – who became a household name with her eponymous ITV daytime show, which ran from 1994 until 1998 before moving to the BBC for a short-lived show for several months the following year – announced her new show earlier this month.
She said in a statement: “I cannot wait to get started on this sparkling adventure with Channel 5. This show is all about YOU – your stories, your opinions, your emotions, and your triumphs. Television’s never been so real, honest, or unpredictable.
“Life isn’t perfect, so let’s not pretend it is – let’s help each other out, have a giggle, and make every show a conversation worth having so kick off your shoes and come and join me for lunch, relax with a bit of me time and let’s have a ball!”
The programme will cover a wide range of topics including celebrities, gossip, fashion, relationships and parenting.
Meanwhile, commissioning editor of Channel 5, Federico Ruiz added: “We are thrilled to have signed Vanessa, an award-winning broadcaster and bona-fide national treasure, to our daytime line-up. Our audience love her, and there is nobody better for viewers to spend their lunchtimes with every single weekday.”
ITN’s managing director of content, Ian Rumsey commented: “Vanessa defined the genre with her first talk show and this new slot on Channel 5 is a brilliant and unique opportunity to work with one of the pioneers of talk shows, and take all that talent, energy and experience to create a fresh twist to daytime chat.”
Vanessa’s new role comes after This Morning viewers branded her brave for undergoing a mammogram live on the ITV show. Last month, Vanessa highlighted the importance of the test which is used to detect breast cancer in a live segment. “Fair play to Vanessa for doing this, it’s a little uncomfortable (literally for a few seconds) but not painful, and can save your life!” wrote one fan on X, formerly Twitter, while another commented: “Well done to Vanessa!!! Love that woman!”
