FIONA Phillips, the TV presenter, is leaving GMTV after 12 years to devote more time to her children and her father, her agent confirmed last night.
The 47-year-old, who is reported to be midway through a three-year £1.5 million contract, will leave the programme at the end of this year.
In a statement, she said it had been "the hardest decision I have ever made".
"I love the job but I've
got other responsibilities – the children, a home life and an elderly dad who needs me – and I've recognised that I can't have it all," she said.
Her decision will reopen the debate about how women can combine high-flying careers with demanding family responsibilities.
The presenter is married to the programme editor Martin Frizell and the couple have two sons, Nathanial, 9, and Mackenzie, 6.
Peter McHugh, GMTV's director of programming, said that she would be sorely missed. "But after all those years of getting up at 4am, we can understand why she wants a change," he said.
"Her honesty and openness have helped make GMTV the success it is. She is a tough act to follow."
Despite her departure, planned for Christmas, the presenter will not be disappearing from television entirely. Her agent said last night: "Fiona is leaving GMTV but she is not leaving television."
In her time with the programme, she has covered the OJ Simpson trial, the Los Angeles earthquake and interviewed everyone from Brad Pitt to Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
She spoke to Michael Barrymore in 2002 about the death of Stuart Lubbock in his swimming pool and has regularly interviewed the Beckhams.
In April, Phillips revealed she was still struggling to cope with the loss of her mother who died two years ago from Alzheimer's disease and admitted breaking down in tears in the studio. She also previously admitted her busy schedule often left her in a state of "complete and utter exhaustion" and liable to "snap and get irrational". Back then, she added : "I often think about giving it all up, but I love my job too much."
As well as GMTV, Phillips writes a regular newspaper column, hosts a radio show, is patron of numerous charities including Barnardo's, the Alzheimer's Society and Age Concern, and took part in Strictly Come Dancing last year.
The full article contains 400 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
