Carol Kirkwood
BBC Media Centre

Carol Kirkwood struggled to hold back tears on Tuesday morning as she told BBC Breakfast viewers she would be leaving the broadcaster after more than a quarter of a century.

At 63, Kirkwood has been the main face of BBC Breakfast weather since 2010. She confirmed she will step down in April, her voice cracking as co-hosts Sally Nugent and Jon Kay invited her onto the sofa to share what she called the hardest news she has ever had to deliver on air, reports said.

Kirkwood joined the BBC Weather Centre in April 1998 after training at The Weather Channel and the Met Office. But her history with Breakfast runs even deeper. She worked behind the scenes when the programme first launched, starting as a production secretary before eventually moving in front of the camera.

Time With Her Husband Awaits

Despite the emotional weight of the moment, Kirkwood found space for levity. She joked that she did not want to still be presenting forecasts while relying on a Zimmer frame, unable to stretch far enough to reach the northern isles on her weather map.

What really draws her away is time with husband Steve Randall. They married in December 2023 at Cliveden House, but her punishing schedule of 2.45 a.m. wake-up calls has meant they rarely see each other. Randall, a police officer, still rises early to make herself a cup of tea before she heads to Broadcasting House for her 4 a.m. start. Kirkwood described them as ships that pass in the night and said she was looking forward to finally spending proper time together.

They first met in 2017 and were friends before romance developed. Randall proposed during a riverside picnic near their Berkshire home in spring 2022, and Kirkwood announced the engagement live from the Chelsea Flower Show that May, flashing her ring and catching colleagues completely off guard.

From Wimbledon To Strictly

Beyond the daily forecasts that made her a household name, Kirkwood became synonymous with British summer institutions. She reported live from Wimbledon, the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, and Royal Ascot, her warm presence as reliable as the events themselves. In 2015, she competed on Strictly Come Dancing alongside professional partner Pasha Kovalev, making it through to week eight before elimination.

Awards followed her throughout her career. She was repeatedly named best TV weather presenter by the Television and Radio Industries Club. Born Carol MacKellaig in the Highland village of Morar, Inverness-shire, she was one of eight children raised by parents who ran a hotel. After studying at what is now Edinburgh Napier University, she joined the BBC in London and worked her way up before training as a meteorologist.

Her first marriage to cricketer Jimmy Kirkwood lasted 18 years before ending in 2008. She has spoken openly about finding unexpected happiness with Randall in her fifties, calling him the best thing that ever happened to her.

BBC Hails 'Gold Standard' Journalism

Tributes poured in from BBC leadership. Jonathan Munro, interim chief executive at BBC News and Current Affairs, called Kirkwood's contribution exceptional. He praised her ability to cover major national moments alongside everyday forecasts, noting she had set the gold standard for accurate journalism delivered with an appropriately sunny outlook. She would be greatly missed across the corporation, he added.

In her official statement, Kirkwood thanked colleagues for their friendship and support while acknowledging the viewers who had welcomed her into their mornings for so long. She said the decision had not been easy but felt like the right moment to step away, adding that she would carry wonderful memories with her.

The BBC has not yet announced who will replace her.