BBC Breakfast stars Naga Munchetty and Charlie Stayt were praised by viewers of the show on Thursday morning for their interview with Transport Secretary Mark Harper.
The presenting duo, who have both been absent on different occasions over the past few weeks, grilled the MP following Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s announcement that the northern leg of HS2 is to be scrapped.
During one part of the interview, the presenters asked the politician about the costs involved in cancelling contracts. Watch the moment in the video below.
Taking to Twitter, now X, viewers praised Naga and Charlie’s interviewing style, with one person writing: “Naga and Charlie, great interview. Holding Mark Harper accountable,” while another added: “@BBCBreakfast Naga and Charlie taking no nonsense this morning #badcopbadcop love it!”
A third person tweeted: “@TVNaga01 and Charlie Stayt, credit where credits due, fantastic questioning,” while another added: “@TVNaga01 Great job with Mark Harper, Charlie was as stern as I’ve ever seen him!”
Other viewers also commented on the fact that Naga and Charlie were reunited on the red sofa. One person tweeted: “Order is restored, Charlie and Naga are on the sofa together.”
Both presenters have been off at different times over the past few weeks, with Naga absent from Friday and Saturday’s shows last week, whilst Charlie was missing from the sofa the previous week.
The presenters have hosted the programme together since Naga joined the line-up of main presenters in 2014. Charlie had previously presented alongside Susanna Reid before she left for ITV’s Good Morning Britain.
© BBCThe line-up of BBC Breakfast presenters
© BBCCharlie Stayt
The journalist joined BBC Breakfast back in 2006 and now hosts the show alongside Naga Munchetty from Thursday to Saturday. Prior to joining the BBC, Charlie was the principal anchor of Five News, fronting the programme’s 9/11 coverage and Millennium celebrations.
Naga Munchetty The presenter joined the line-up of main presenters in 2014. Before landing a role on BBC Breakfast, she appeared on BBC World News, as well as BBC Two’s weekday financial affairs programme, Working Lunch.
Sally Nugent Sally has been a main presenter on the show since 2021, replacing Louise Minchin following her departure after 20 years. Sally previously worked as a sports presenter on the show and covered various major sporting events for the BBC, including Emma Raducanu’s historic victory in the US Open tennis championship in 2021.
Jon Kay
The newsreader and journalist took over from Dan Walker following his exit in 2022. He previously worked as a news correspondent for BBC News at Six and covered major events such as the 2012 London Olympics and the 2015 general election campaign.
Carol Kirkwood
Carol is the show’s main weather presenter and has been waking up the nation with the weather forecast on the BBC for 30 years.
Nina Warhurst
Nina is the show’s main business presenter, having taken over from Steph McGovern in 2020. She often fills in as an anchor on the red sofa when the main hosts are absent.
Ben Thompson
Ben is a relief presenter and regularly stands in for the main hosts when they are away from the red sofa. He can also be seen on BBC News.
John Watson
John is a sports presenter and has been working for the BBC since 2012, providing viewers will all the latest sports news and stories.
Both Naga and Charlie have opened up about fronting the show in previous interviews, with Naga detailing her early morning routine whilst chatting to RadioTimes.com.
“My first alarm goes off at 3:45am,” she said. “I have a very tight schedule, and a very organised morning, my work outfit is always laid out the night before. But I do have a system of snoozing before getting out of bed.”
© BBCCharlie added: “I refuse to snooze. As soon as the alarm goes off, I am up. The other thing is, I embrace the siesta. It’s become a big thing for me. I sort of sit down in the afternoon and consciously do nothing. No snooze and have a siesta, that’s the formula.”
MORE: Take a look back at Naga Munchetty’s early career
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Naga also revealed that she tends to receive more online abuse than her co-star. “He doesn’t engage, so he doesn’t see any comments,” she explained. “I get more comments than Charlie but I think also that is because men just wear suits, so there isn’t really too much to object to, whereas I don’t wear suits and buy my own clothes. So inevitably people think they can comment on what I wear.”
© Danny Lawson – PA ImagesNaga often responds to criticism with witty remarks. In September, Naga hit back at a viewer who made a scathing remark about the black silk dress she was wearing on the show.
The comment in question read: “@BBCBreakfast What is @TVNaga01 wearing?? Looks like she’s come straight to work from a night out at a sleazy single’s nightclub…”
Responding with humour, Naga replied: “Sssssh… don’t tell anyone. (btw – it’s called a dress).”
