Susanna Reid wasted no time in making a playful jab at Richard Madeley as he returned to Good Morning Britain following an eight-week break on Tuesday.
Madeley, 66, had been away writing his novel, he informed viewers as he came back to the show.
The presenter had noticed that the ITV studio seemed smaller than it was when he was last there, leading Reid to fire shots at her co-host.
“Has this place shrunk since I’ve been away? It’s smaller!” Madeley said.
Reid quipped: “Despite my insistence we carry on sitting miles and miles apart, they have brought us closer together.”
Madeley chuckled as he replied: “I thought you’d be against it. You like your little bubble, don’t you?”
“I do,” she parried. “I like holding everyone at arm’s length.”
Sensing tension in the air following her remarks, Reid showed her softer side as she placed a hand on Madeley’s shoulder.
“Anyway, it’s nice to have you back,” she said, changing her tune.
Surprised by her sudden warm switch in tone, Madeley said: “Oh blimey, we can actually touch...”
Susanna asserted: “Just a shoulder tap.”
Madeley’s return to GMB comes after he became a grandfather over the summer, as his daughter, Chloe, welcomed a baby girl named Bodhi.
The star received congratulations from Reid as he explained what he’d been up to during his eight-week break.
Madeley said: “I was finishing my novel and I just couldn’t do this show and finish the novel at the same time. I’ve done it and now I’m back.”
Susanna said: “So you’ve given up life for the early shifts.
She added: “Well, it’s absolutely lovely to have you back.”
