Ben Shephard to leave GMTV

Ben Shephard is waving goodbye to GMTV. The presenter is leaving after a decade with the early morning programme.

The news comes just days after it was confirmed that The One Show's Adrian Chiles would be joining the team as an anchor. But Ben's spokespeople insist this did not affect his decision.

In a statement they said: "Ben's two year contract with GMTV is up at the end of April. Earlier this year his management made it clear that he would not be renewing, but would be happy to stay on temporarily during this transitional period."

They added: "Ben is excited about moving on after ten incredible years and will be focusing on a number of new projects with ITV and other channels."

An ITV spokesperson said: "He will continue to present the programme throughout the summer. We are also talking to him about other projects We'd like to thank Ben for his fantastic contribution to the show."

The dad-of-two has recently enjoyed success as the presenter of popular gameshow The Krypton Factor.

Ben joins fellow GMTV star Penny Smith, who announced this year that she was planning to leave after 17 years.