Matthew Wright to leave The Wright Stuff - BBC News
The TV presenter says he "wants to try his hand at something new".
Wright has been at the helm of the show for 18 years

TV presenter Matthew Wright is leaving his role as the host of Channel 5's The Wright Stuff.

Wright has presented the topical current affairs chat show since it began in 2000.

He said in statement: "After almost 18 glorious years on Channel 5 and with the show flying high in the ratings, I feel it's time to depart."

Channel 5 said the show will continue with a new host but we don't know yet who or what the show will be called.

Ben Frow, director of programmes at Channel 5, said Wright would be "sorely missed".

He added: "We would like to thank Matthew for his passion, hard work and enthusiasm over the last 18 years and for making the show what it is today."

The star had tweeted earlier that there was a "big, big announcement coming".

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In his show, Wright chews over the talking points of the day with a panel of guests as well as taking calls from viewers.

Guests over the years have included Tony Blair, George Galloway, Ben Elton and Brian May.

His website says: "Aside from Mrs Wright, the big love of Matthew's life has been presenting The Wright Stuff."

Wright started his career in newspapers, first at the Sun and later at The Daily Mirror, where he had a daily column for five years, before making his move into TV.

He is also known for presenting BBC weekly factual show Inside Out London and was a contestant on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! in 2013.

Matthew Wright always said to me that he would stop presenting The Wright Stuff when it stopped being fun. (I was the on-screen audience researcher from 2005-7.)

Until last year, the show was made by Princess Productions, an independent production company. The company was set up in 1996, and bought by the production giant Endemol Shine in 2007.

Last May, Endemol Shine shut Princess Productions. Under Ben Frow, Director of Programmes, Channel 5 invited various bids for the right to produce the show.

In the end, ITN won the right to broadcast the show. But the move was an uncomfortable one. Many of the staff who had long worked on the show were not brought over, and there were technical issues in the studio.

Over the past several months, the show has maintained its audience share, but away from the cameras there has been tension aplenty.

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