ITN's Dermot Murnaghan and Sky News anchor Natasha Kaplinsky are to be the new faces of BBC's Breakfast.

Murnaghan, who has been with ITN for eleven years, will replace Jeremy Bowen on the programme, which airs each morning between 6am and 9am.

"We are delighted that Dermot has decided to join BBC News as the new Breakfast presenter," said Richard Sambrook, Director of BBC News. "He is an outstanding journalist whose interviewing skills and broadcast experience will ensure that BBC Breakfast continues to give viewers the best possible start to their day."

Bowen, meanwhile, will take a short break from the BBC to write a book, before returning to foreign reporting and other programming.

"Dermot is an excellent choice, he has real warmth which is what you need for the Breakfast slot," he said. "I wish him all the best. I'm looking forward to writing my book - a history of the 1967 Arab/Israeli war - then, in the new year, returning to news reporting and presenting and making other programmes for BBC One."

The other half of the programme's new presenting team will be Sky News' Natasha Kaplinsky, who anchors the hugely popular Live At Five programme.

The 28-year-old will replace Sophie Raworth, who will move on to the presenter lineup for the peaktime 6pm and 10pm bulletins.

Raworth will continue to front the show alongside Murnaghan until January.