'Live With Kelly and Michael' News: Kelly Ripa Reveals When She's Returning, Thanks Staff [VIDEO]
Kelly Ripa will be returning to Live With Kelly and Michael next week, in the wake of Michael Strahan's major announcement.
Fans have been wondering when Ripa would return to Live after taking off the past three days. ABC announced Tuesday that Strahan would be leaving the show for Good Morning America in September, a decision Ripa apparently heard mere minutes before it was announced to the press.
There were reports that Ripa was "beyond angry" with ABC for the decision, but now she is ready to return to work. Ripa wrote to her staff Friday, revealing she'll be back for Tuesday's episode.
"I wanted to thank you all for giving me the time to process this new information," Ripa wrote, according to Deadline. "Your kindness, support, and love has overwhelmed me. We are a family and I look forward to seeing you all on Tuesday morning."
Ripa has been totally silent on social media since the Strahan announcement, not even issuing any statement to the press about the matter.
Meanwhile, Strahan spoke about his relationship with Ripa on Wednesday's episode:
"I really want to thank of course Kelly Ripa because Kelly welcomed me here and I've learned so much from her," he said. "She's been an amazing influence on me and it has truly changed my life to be here with her. I know that the show will continue to be strong and great because of Kelly and Michael Gelman and the staff here. Everybody is so talented and this show has not been around for over 30 years by mistake... Kelly, I thank you and I love you and everyone else here at Live."
There's no word on who may replace Strahan after he leaves Live in September, though there is a rumored short list that includes Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen. Cohen did tell TMZ that he's too busy for the job, but there's no word on whether Cooper may accept the position. Cooper has guest hosted the show with Ripa in the past.
