Dan Walker says he is grateful for the "breakfast love" he gets from the BBC audience - and it means he has no intentions of leaving despite only initially planning to host the morning show for a few years.
Today (Tuesday) marks six years since Dan replaced Bill Turnbull on the BBC Breakfast sofa and he is still enjoying the challenge, winning praise for his interview with Liz Truss last week.
In previous interviews with the Mirror he told how he initially thought there would be "no chance" he would continue for more than five years.
But asked how long he might stay now, Dan said: "I genuinely don't know. Honestly, I can't say I'll be here for 10 years because who knows? I think I told you before, I definitely wouldn't stay as long as Bill Turnbull's been knocking about for. I love new challenges, but I love this challenge. And I really love the programme and I love working with the people so I don't see myself going anywhere soon."
Dan, now working alongside Sally Nugent who replaced Louise Minchin last year, also paid tribute to viewers and said they were the only reason he was able to stay on and enjoy Strictly Come Dancing for as long as he did.
On his ambitions on the programme, the 44-year-old said: "I think just keep growing. We are very thankful for such a huge loyal audience. And I mean, I think you only realise that every now and again.
"On Strictly, when you're on there and you think I was in the bottom two or three every single week(judges scores) and you're never in the dance off. Now a lot of that is because you've got the (BBC) Breakfast love.
"So you've got your audience of people who buy stuff who vote and who donate. And when you meet them on the street or when you go to events or whatever, that they're all lovely.
"Really kind, really generous and just appreciate the relationship they have with you in the morning. I think just build on that really, that's what I'd love to do."
Dan also bizarrely revealed that whilst working on the programme, he tends to eat the same breakfast every day for around TWO YEARS before changing his routine.
He explained: "I had two years of porridge when I started because the first morning they said, 'What do you want?'. I said, 'What can you get?' And she(show worker) said, 'porridge.' So I had porridge for two years.
"And then one day she said 'You know you can have something else.' After two years.
"And I went, 'And what else is there?' She goes 'You can have toast and peanut butter.'
"So all right I'll have that. So I had that for two years. And then she said 'There is other stuff up there.' and I said, "What else have they got?" She said, 'They've got this like yogurt and granola thing.' So I'll have that. And I've had that for the last year and a half now! I'm not a robot, but that's just what I do."
Dan praised new co-host Sally, despite criticising her "smelly coffee" in a profile interview with her last week in the Mirror.
He said: "The Breakfast audience already knows Sally, already liked her and they're really happy that she is on the programme to go forward. The fact that we get on so well on and off screen, I think that you can see that from one minute past six."
* BBC Breakfast is on seven days a week from 6am on BBC1. Sally and Dan host the show Monday-Wednesdays.
