Britton takes This Morning break

Britton has been a regular host on This Morning since 2001

Fern Britton is taking a break from presenting This Morning following her admission she had stomach surgery.

The 50-year-old, whose dramatic weight-loss had been widely attributed to diet and exercise, underwent gastric banding in 2006.

She has faced criticism in the press and from fans after admitting to the operation last week.

ITV said: "Fern is having some time off and we are hoping to see her back at work very soon."

Co-presenter Phillip Schofield is hosting Tuesday's programme on his own.

'Personal decision'

Britton told This Morning viewers last week that she did not feel the need to "tell everybody" when she initially underwent surgery, and only decided to go public after a Sunday newspaper said it planned to run the story.

She added that the decision to undergo the surgery was a personal one, and that only a handful of people knew about the operation.

Britton added that she had spoken very carefully about eating less and exercising more and what she said was "absolutely true".

She made light of the situation, joking: "If I have a face-lift or haemorrhoids or something, I will ring the Sunday papers straight away."

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