BBC Breakfast’s Charlie Stayt was unexpectedly replaced by his colleague on Thursday (February 13).
The popular morning news show featured regular host Naga Munchetty delivering the day’s top stories alongside Ben Thompson, who frequently filled in when the primary hosts were away.
Charlie joined BBC Breakfast as a relief presenter in 2006 and was confirmed as the Friday to Sunday host in 2007. He then covered for the Monday to Wednesday presenters until Jon Kay officially took over from Dan Walker in 2022.
After the programme relocated to Salford studios, Charlie and Naga became the regular presenters from Thursday to Saturday each week.
On today’s BBC Breakfast, Naga and Ben were joined by Mike Bushell, who presented the latest sports news, including Wednesday’s (February 12) heated Premier League match between Everton and Liverpool, reports the Express.
Matt Taylor was also in the studio to present the latest weather forecasts.
In other news, Naga and Ben announced some “breaking” news regarding the UK economy. The Office for National Statistics confirmed that the economy grew by 0.1% in the final quarter of 2024, following three months of stagnation.
The duo then passed over to correspondent Ben Boulos, who was reporting live from a tea factory in Newcastle. He explained the significance of these new figures.
“It doesn’t sound much, but remember the expectation had been that it had shrunk, so this will be welcome news for the chancellor, for the government. They have repeatedly said that economic growth is the UK’s top priority; it is their focus, and what they feel that the UK really needs to focus on,” Ben revealed.
He further added: “This latest figure comes just a week, though, after the Bank of England halved its growth forecast for the coming year, expecting the UK economy growth by just 0.75% in 2025.”
BBC Breakfast airs daily at 6am on BBC One.