Ben Shephard bid farewell to Good Morning Britain on Friday after hosting his final show alongside co-star and friend Kate Garraway.
The presenter is leaving the breakfast show after landing a role as a permanent host of This Morning alongside Cat Deeley. The pair will front their first programme on Monday, March 11.
Just minutes into the programme, Ben, 49, was visibly emotional after watching a montage of farewell messages from his colleagues, friends and even two of his favourite West Ham footballers Carlton Cole and Mark Noble.
© ITV“Ben, your last day mate. You were 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.”
Holding back tears, Ben said: “That’s Mark Noble. 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.”
© Ken McKay/ITV/ShutterstockDr Hilary also shared a tribute, telling Ben: “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.”
He added: “I know that going onto This Morning, you’re going to absolutely smash it. Break a leg mate, keep in touch!”
© Ken McKay/ITV/ShutterstockBen was visibly moved by the messages. “I’m desperately trying to hold this together, we’ve got three hours,” he told viewers. “It’s lovely to be here for the last time. And we’ve got a busy show to get through as well.”
Ben has been a mainstay of ITV Breakfast for decades, having joined the now-defunct GMTV back in 2000 as an entertainment presenter before eventually becoming one of the show’s main hosts alongside Fiona Phillips, and later Kate Garraway.
In 2014, he was announced as part of the new line-up for Good Morning Britain, joining Susanna Reid, Charlotte Hawkins and Sean Fletcher, and reuniting with Kate.
© Ken McKay/ITV/ShutterstockOpening up about his decision to move to This Morning on Thursday’s show, Ben said: “Obviously, it’s something I considered very, very carefully because these guys have been my family – for the last ten years for some of them and way, way longer for us Kate).
“So, it’s not something that I’ve taken lightly but it feels like quite an exciting opportunity.”
