Make-up free and wrapped in a fluffy white dressing down, Susanna Reid has a glow about her that should be criminal for someone who’s been up since 3.45am.
Although we’re used to seeing Susanna as the immaculate, razor-sharp presenter grilling tricky politicians on Good Morning Britain, she is also a loving mum to three boys – Sam, 20, Finn, 18, and Jack, 17 – and is currently dealing with the complex emotions surrounding empty nest syndrome.
During our cover shoot in support of GMB’s 1 Million Minutes campaign – which aims to eradicate loneliness in the UK – she tells us how her eldest, Sam, recently headed off to university and it’s clearly been a wrench.
“You cry your heart out, because all that regular time with your children has gone,” she says. “It’s really sad. Now they’re all en route to leaving home, I want to enjoy time with them as much as I possibly can. Good Morning Britain is my biggest commitment and I’m not taking on anything extra.”
The presenter’s career has taken her from BBC Breakfast to GMB, while she’s also made important documentaries about serial rapists and death row inmates in the US – and managed a turn on the Strictly dance floor!
And ITV bosses must be delighted by the golden touch she brings to GMB, whose audience share is up year on year, while Susanna’s headline-grabbing interrogation of former Prime Minister Boris Johnson in May pulled in a whopping 1.3 million viewers.
“For four-and-a-half years, Boris said he wouldn’t do an interview with GMB,” says Susanna. “Then I was able to go to Downing Street and put the big questions directly to the man in charge. The audience responded really well. It’s what they want and it’s why I don’t want the ministers to cut down on interview time.”
This is currently a concern for Susanna, 51, who is challenging Prime Minister Rishi Sunak ’s recent drive to reduce MPs’ appearances on breakfast TV and radio.
“This morning I registered a protest about Rishi stopping government ministers from doing the breakfast shows every day,” she reveals. “I said, ‘If you want full accountability, you don’t do that by doing fewer interviews.’ Rishi is really enthusiastic, though, and he’s got a grasp of the details. He’s somebody you could not criticise for being lax or lazy.”
It’s been 20 months since her former co-presenter Piers Morgan, 56, dramatically quit GMB following a row over comments he made about Meghan Markle. Some predicted the show would struggle without the divisive presenter, but it’s flourishing.
“We’re still in contact regularly and he’s doing what he does best,” Susanna says of her former colleague.
So has Piers tried to poach her for Talk TV? “That was never on the cards,” she says. “But in terms of how the dynamic’s changed on GMB, I think we have maintained a very lively programme. I’m so lucky, because I get to work with somebody different all the time and it means they don’t get tired of me.
“Richard Madeley is a television legend, Ed Balls has so much political insight, Rob Rinder has his exceptional legal skills and character and Martin Lewis is the hero of the cost-of-living crisis. Then there’s Ben Shephard. Everybody’s got a healthy crush on Ben – that’s no secret! And nobody has to whisper about their crush on Ben like they have to whisper about their crush
on Matt Hancock.”
The star – who maintains an excellent co-parenting relationship with her ex-partner, journalist Dominic Cotton – is referring to a newspaper journalist who recently confessed to harbouring a crush on the former health secretary turned I’m A Celebrity star.
“Apparently people do [fancy Hancock] but that’s for them,” says Susanna, making her position clear.
She is equally complimentary about her co-stars Charlotte Hawkins, Kate Garraway, Ranvir Singh and Laura Tobin.
“I love those women – they’re warm, intelligent, compassionate and interesting. We’re very supportive and have great fun,” she says. “We do events outside of work, like Pride Of Britain, which is sometimes the only chance I get to see Kate, who is dedicated to looking after her husband Derek and her family.
“And it’s always fun to be sat on a table where Laura is having a drink. If there’s one person who knows how to enjoy an event, it’s Laura!”
Susanna stopped drinking four years ago and doesn’t miss it. “I stopped enjoying it,” she says. “I prefer life alcohol-free – it’s tiring and the hangxiety got to me. I don’t feel like I can plough on after pints of Guinness the night before. Spending time with the kids is my release.”
She may be off the booze, but like many of us over the past few years, there’s been some comfort eating. “During lockdown I put on a stone,” she says. “Unrestricted access to the bread bin was my downfall and not doing enough exercise, so I’m back on the Peloton bike and trying to cut out snacking again.”
Susanna says she lives in the moment. “I never look ahead. I just hope I’m doing this forever because I love live television,” she says. “There is never a night before work when I feel fearful. I spend Sundays prepping for the show. Sleep is the only time I switch off.”
One person she credits with helping launch her career is the late Bill Turnbull, her former BBC Breakfast co-host who she lovingly nicknamed Dr Dolittle. The presenter passed away in August, aged 66, following a battle with prostate cancer.
“I still can’t believe he’s gone,” she shares. “He taught me everything I know about journalism. He was a clever, kind and funny man. He was also a massive animal lover. When we worked together in Salford I took my children to his farm. My middle son was petrified of animals, but got over his fear, thanks to Bill. I called him Dr Dolittle – he was the animal whisperer.”
This week, Susanna has joined her colleagues Kate and Ben to launch a project close to her heart – Good Morning Britain’s award-winning 1 Million Minutes campaign. Now in its seventh year, it encourages viewers to pledge their time to charities and connect with those who feel alone. To date, people have donated over 404 million minutes to the campaign.
“It’s terrible to feel loneliness, particularly at Christmas,” says Susanna. “This campaign encourages people to volunteer their time to make sure somebody isn’t lonely. We are also going to be in your living rooms on Christmas Day. TV is sometimes the only company people have. I’m glad we can be company for people who are not able to be with their families.”
ITV has the 1 Million Minutes campaign, where people donate their time to help end loneliness. So far, 423 million minutes have been donated.
