Ben Shephard announces 'last day' on ITV This Morning as he leaves UK

Ben Shephard has revealed he's taking a break from This Morning, yet remains tight-lipped about his plans while way. The ex-Good Morning Britain anchor, who currently presents the ITV show alongside Cat Deeley after Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby stepped down, usually co-hosts from Monday to Thursday.

His usual breaks have coincided school holidays. But Ben has now disclosed that he won't be gracing our screens next week.

Wrapping up Thursday's episode, he informed viewers: "I'm taking a couple of weeks away to go out and work on this exciting new project for ITV. It's top secret!"

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The 49 year old presenter further hinted that he was jetting off 'to the other side of the world' immediately after the programme, but remained coy about the details. When Cat speculated whether he'd be munching on 'witchetty grubs' as part of I'm A Celebrity bushtucker trials, Ben responded: "I can neither confirm nor deny where in the world I'm going."

She then queried if he'd be meeting her 'two mates', Ant and Dec, to which he reiterated his stance of not being able to 'confirm or deny' anything. Ben promised to spill the beans on Monday's This Morning "live from where I am in the world".

While the star hasn't divulged what he might be doing, rumours are swirling about which celebrities are set to jet off Down Under for I'm A Celebrity, which kicks off in just over a week. Ben and Cat stepped into the roles on This Morning following the departure of Schofield and Holly, who left within months of each other.

Schofield confessed to an 'unwise but not illegal' affair before his exit. However, the new presenting team has struggled to retain viewership, with audience numbers halving in their initial few months.