'This Morning' hosts Richard and Judy return to the show after 18 years

Former This Morning presenters Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan appeared on the daytime show today, and fans were thrilled to see them back on the studio sofa.

The married duo - who hosted the programme between October 1988 and July 2001 - joined stand-ins Rochelle Humes and Mollie King to talk about their annual 'Search for a Bestseller' competition.

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“Isn’t this weird, being interviewed on This Morning?” Madeley joked. “It’s like walking through a mirror! I keep wanting to thank you and then turn to the camera!”

During their segment, they paused to introduce what was coming up next on the show, which had viewers taking to Twitter to urge ITV to “please bring them back.”

“TV legends,” one watcher declared, as another deemed them the “King and Queen of daytime telly.”

A third admitted that they were reduced to tears watching Madeley and Finnigan present the show once again, because it reminded them of the comfort the twosome provided during a difficult time in their life.

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“[This Morning] started just before my daughter was born in Jan 1989, they saw me through post-natal depression (my second bout), my daily dose of cheeriness when I was at my wits' end,” they explained.

A fourth wrote: “Judy is looking great... the pair have just fallen so comfortably back in to place it’s as if they never left... need more.”

This Morning presenter Rylan Clark-Neal also took to Twitter to say: “Seeing Richard and Judy read in and out of a break on @thismorning has made my year...

“ACTUALLY NO, seeing them drinking wine and eating a dish called the dogs pollock at midday has.”