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Richard Madeley has been married to fellow TV presenter Judy Finnigan for almost 40 years, but the couple have been sleeping in separate rooms due to one particular reason

Richard Madeley has revealed the heartfelt reason behind why he sleeps in a separate bedroom from Judy Finnigan. The 69 year old Good Morning Britain presenter shot to stardom alongside Judy during the 1980s when the couple fronted ITV’s This Morning, before launching their own show, Richard and Judy, on Channel 4.

The pair first crossed paths in 1982, while both were married to different partners, but their romance flourished and 39 years ago today (November 21) they tied the knot in Manchester. They share two children, Jack and Chloe Madeley, while Richard is also stepfather to Judy’s two eldest sons, Dan and Tom Henshaw, from her previous marriage.

Richard and Judy, who turns 78 today (Saturday, May 16), ran from 2001 to 2009 before declining ratings led to its cancellation by television channel Watch. Judy later became a regular panellist on ITV’s Loose Women while Richard joined Good Morning Britain. However, a decade ago, Judy made the major decision to step back from television – which has resulted in them sleeping separately.

And Richard says his wife is “really enjoying” her break from the cameras. Meanwhile, he continues presenting GMB alongside journalist Susanna Reid. Though he recently took time off from the programme, informing followers he was “operating at 80 per cent” after contracting Covid.

Hosting ITV’s flagship morning programme means early rises for Richard. With GMB broadcasting from 6am, he regularly retreats to the spare room so his wife can enjoy a few extra hours of sleep. The beloved presenter lifted the lid on their bedtime arrangements during an appearance on Kate Thornton’s White Wine Question Time podcast.

He explained: “When I’m doing Good Morning Britain I sleep in the spare room. I do probably sleep a little bit better in bed with Judy but I’m okay on my own.” When asked whether he’d consider waking Judy up early instead, he added: “I wouldn’t think of doing that to Judy. Apart from anything else, Judy and her sleep, you do not mess with,” reports the Manchester Evening News.

Kate revealed that fellow early-morning broadcaster Amol Rajan claims he “sleeps better” with his wife beside him — meaning the couple, who have four children all under the age of seven, must rise at the crack of dawn whenever he presents the Today programme. Richard quipped: “Amol Rajan’s wife must be a saint.”

He added: “We did This Morning, but the difference between me and Amol there is that Judy and I would get up at the same time. The alarm would go off, we’d both get up and roll into our jeans, get in the car, and drive to Liverpool to do the show, and then when we were in London, drive down to the Southbank.

So we went to bed at the same time and woke up at the same time.” Richard and Judy first crossed paths in the 1980s while working on separate Granada TV programmes. Richard recalls hearing that Judy was “dicing [an executive] into small cubes with her tongue” following his “something sexist” remark. Speaking to the Guardian in 2014, he said: “I thought, wow – I’m going to marry her.”

Richard has recently disclosed that Judy initially harboured doubts about his capabilities as a stepfather. Speaking to Busted’s Matt Willis on the On the Mend podcast, Richard revealed that Judy made clear she came as a “three-pack” alongside twins Dan and Tom. To thoroughly assess his feelings about the relationship, Richard jetted off to Greece for some soul-searching.

He spent a fortnight in the Mediterranean nation reflecting “quite deeply” on his future, though the tale would eventually reach a happy ending. Richard explained: “So, I went off on my own. I went off to Greece for two weeks on a kind of a solo holiday to think about it, because I didn’t want to rush – well, I wasn’t rushing – but I didn’t want to make that mistake.”

Richard says the period apart from Judy helped him recognise that he was “quite comfortable” taking on a role in the boys’ lives. He added: “I didn’t want to say airily and with super-confidence, ‘Oh, yeah, it’ll be fine. You know, I’m happy to be a stepfather’. I needed to know that I could deliver and that I meant it.”