BBC Countryfile star quits after 13 years in heartfelt letter to viewers
18.10.2023 - 12:15
/ dailyrecord.co.uk
Countryfile presenter Ellie Harrison has left the show after 13 years in her role.
Ellie, 45, joined Countryfile in 2009 after starting her broadcasting career on Channel 5 hosting children's TV show Milkshake! The Countryfile cast consists of John Craven, Adam Henson, Matt Baker, Tom Heap, Paul Martin, Helen Skelton, Charlotte Smith, Steve Brown, Sean Fletcher, and Anita Rani.
The broadcaster penned an emotional statement in her Countryfile magazine column and explained that she wanted to focus on her family and grow her own business. She insisted to readers that she would "see you again someday" when announcing her exit.
Ellie continued: "After 13 years, my final column is a fond farewell to Countryfile - I'll miss the people, places and stories. Thirteen-and-a-half years after I arrived four hours early for my first Countryfile shoot, which culminated in me commuting up Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) to deliver Matt Baker a sandwich of freshly harvested mushrooms, it has come time for me to bid you farewell.
"It has been a decision I've drawn out, such is the bond with the programme, and boy will I miss the geography field trips. But like all endings, I'll take all the lessons from these days forward with me on my journey."
"There are many things I'll miss," Ellie penned. "I've come to realise that I don't need to navigate to a whole new ocean or even a new sea, but to chart a new course somewhere in these waters, raising my three wonderful children, growing our family business and following my own creative calling to produce art of my own making.
She added: "The winds of change are blowing, my hands turn the tiller and I close my eyes to take comfort from Invictus: 'I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.'"
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