Tess Daly returned to TV screens yesterday evening as she fronted BBC’s The One Show alongside her husband, Vernon Kay. The presenter shared the screen with her husband for the first time in almost 20 years. The couple previously presented the BBC singing competition, Just the Two of Us, which they co-hosted between 2006 and 2007.
As Tess made her appearance on The One Show sofa, Vernon told viewers: “Hello everyone and welcome to your Wednesday’s One Show live on BBC One and iPlayer. There’s no Alex or Roman tonight because they’re at Windsor Castle. They’re filming the BBC’s 500 words.”
He added: “But don’t worry because look who we have here, someone I know will definitely keep me in check, TV royalty Tess Daly.” Tess responded: “Wow, I’m thrilled to be here, such a special show.” It marked Tess’ first return to a BBC show since her final Strictly appearance last year.
It was a star-studded show as Hollywood stars Jessie Buckley and Maggie Gyllenhaal were interviewed, alongside Bridgerton stars Luke Thompson and Yerin Ha. After the show finished, Tess posted to Instagram: “An evening at BBC One Show with some incredible guests.”
Last month, Tess said she has some projects upcoming following her departure from Strictly Come Dancing. The 56-year-old star said goodbye to a huge chapter of her life as she left her role as host of the BBC Latin and Ballroom competition after 21 years.
Tess hosted the BBC show with Claudia Winkleman. The two presenters shocked fans when they announced their decision to leave the programme at the end of last year. While Claudia is busy filming The Traitors and Channel 4’s The Piano, Tess has also teased her future as she “loves” working on TV.
In an interview with HELLO! magazine, Tess said: “I’m looking forward to doing other TV projects and there are a couple in the pipeline. I love working in television because I genuinely love people. As a viewer, I love anything authentically emotive that brings a tear to the eye.”
Tess was awarded an MBE for services to broadcasting in King Charles’ 2025 Birthday Honours and admits that it was a “surreal moment” to be presented with the medal by the monarch at Windsor Castle in November.
She said: “The most surreal moment was when His Majesty pinned the medal to my chest. I was trying to take it all in and be in the moment, but my heart was racing with nerves and adrenaline. The day was made all the more emotional since I got to share it with Vernon and our daughters.”
Tess and Vernon met in 2001 and got married in 2003. When they first met, Vernon and Tess were both starting their TV careers and grew closer when they were tasked with recreating a Britney Spears video together. The celebrity couple share two children, they have Phoebe who was born in 2004 and Amber who was born in 2009.