Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan were separated by bosses after 'affair' rumours swirled

Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan have revealed they were separated from one another when working at Granada after bosses found out about their romance. In their new Channel 5 documentary, titled Richard & Judy: Our Best Bits - In Our Own Words, the couple take a look back on their journey in front of the cameras; from their respective careers, to joining forces, and going on to present This Morning for 13 years.

Speaking about the moment they realised they had feelings for one another in the film, the couple recalled being "in the darkness" of a cab when "something shifted" between them. Judy explains to viewers: "Nothing happened not for a long time after that. It was just, our perceptions of each other changed."

As they continued to work together however, romance began to blossom between them, and in 1986, they decided to tie the knot. Speaking in the documentary, former television executive and producer Dianne Nelmes told viewers that she heard rumours about the pair being more than friends, but didn't initially believe it.

She shared: "Rumours started that Richard and Judy were having an affair and I simply didn't believe it.

"I remember at one point I got a few journalists together and read the riot act and said, 'Will you stop all this gossip they've got a great chemistry on screen and they are just good friends, so stop it'. Well, I never live that down."

In his words, Richard said there was a "jealously, resentment [and] disapproval" from bosses at the time, who thought "for some reason, this wasn't quite on".

He continued: "They separated us, professionally, and that went on for, even after we got married in 1986. Even then, that somehow wasn't enough."

Richard and Judy continued to work for the same company, but separately, apart from one exception when they fronted ITV's Telethon, the broadcaster's fundraising event.

During this period, bosses were discussing who could be the perfect presenting duo for a new daytime chat show which soon became This Morning.

Sharing how they got the gig, the presenter said: "Suddenly one of them, Steve Morrison, the managing director, looked at the TV which had been flickering away for the last 15 hours, and there's me and Judy presenting together. And he went... 'Them!'

"'They're married. They've got kids. They're a real couple, them. And they all went, 'yeah!'

"It was a kind of lightbulb moment.

"The next day, we got separate calls from the bosses asking if we'd like to do a pilot for this show, This Morning.

"It was only because of the Telethon, otherwise we'd not have been asked."

During their time together on the show, they also juggled being parents to their children Chloe, 36, and Jack, 38, who were babies at the time.

Additionally, Judy has two other older children with her ex-husband David Henshaw.

The couple are also proud grandparents to five grandchildren including Chloe's daughter, who turns two next month, and Jack's two children.

Richard & Judy: Our Best Bits - In Our Own Words is available to watch on My 5.