Phillips: 'Life is better without GMTV'

Fiona Phillips has insisted that she has no regrets over her decision to quit GMTV.

The presenter stepped down from the morning show after 12 years in December after realising that she wanted to spend more time with her family.

Phillips, 48, and her husband Martin Frizell, who edits GMTV, have two sons together, Nathaniel, ten, and Mackenzie, seven.

Reflecting on the change in her life, Phillips told New! magazine: "At night, I used to put the children to bed and I would say to Mackenzie: 'You've got five seconds to choose a book!'

"I would think: 'This is awful - making him hurry because I'm tired'. Now I've got all the time in the world to read and talk to them."

Discussing her marriage, she added: "Well, it annoys me because he won't talk to me about GMTV [anymore]. I will try and get the gossip, but he won't give it to me! But our relationship is better because I'm not constantly tired, and if he's stressed about something he can talk to me."

Phillips also played down reports that she is disappointed after failing to find new TV work following her departure.

She claimed: "I didn't leave GMTV to go straight into other things. Since leaving, practically every production company has met with me to discuss projects. But it's only been six months! I'm just beginning to realise that I can go out at night."