​Stars ‘taken off air’ after ‘affair’ scandal ​

Good Morning America hosts TJ Holmes and Amy Robach have been taken off air just days after it was claimed they’d been having an affair.

It has been reported that presenters Stephanie Ramos and Gio Benitez will now host the spin-off show GMA3 this week while US network ABC figures out how to move forward with the alleged scandal, The US Sun reports.

“There is massive confusion internally,’ a source told the Daily Mail.

“ABC News executive Kim [Godwin] has taken them off the air while they deal with this internally.”
 

Last week, The US Sun revealed that it looked like 45-year-old Hughes and Robach, 49, were going to be “pushed out” of the buttoned-up morning show.

The source close to production of the family-oriented ABC news program said execs and top talent were furious over co-stars Hughes and Robach’s alleged romance, which has rocked the GMA staff and thrown production into absolute chaos.

The source said: “There is no way they are going to be able to stay at GMA”.

“They may not be outright fired, but they’ll be relegated to lesser roles, which will make it undesirable for them to continue.”

The public first caught wind of the affair after Hughes and Robach, who is married to Melrose Place actor Andrew Shue, were spotted enjoying what looked like a series of PDA-filled “dates” and even a weekend getaway together in November.

In pictures obtained by the Daily Mail, the TV stars looked intimate while having a drink at a bar in New York City on November 10. They were also caught apparently spending time together at each other’s apartments in Manhattan.

The pair – who began anchoring GMA3 in 2020 – reportedly headed to upstate New York on November 11 for a weekend getaway at a cottage two weeks before Thanksgiving.

Hours after it was reported that the hosts were involved in an apparent affair, viewers saw an immediate change to Wednesday’s program as Hughes nervously broadcast the 60-minute GMA3 show solo, without Hughes or their fellow co-host Dr Jennifer Ashton.

Last Thursday morning, Hughes was no longer at the main anchor desk with Robin Roberts and George Stephanopoulos, as he had been all week filling in for head host Michael Strahan.
 

No secret?

While one insider said that those on the peripheral production staff at GMA were completely blindsided by the news, a second source alleged Hughes and Robach weren’t doing much to hide their budding romance before the story broke last week.

“Tongues were wagging” in their inner-work bubble, the second source claimed.

In their native New York City, Hughes and Robach were frequently seen running together, though one staffer assumed they were simply colleagues training together for the New York City Marathon.

“When I would see them, I always found it odd that Amy was working out in full hair and makeup.

“Now I understand- it was a date,” the staffer said.

Viewers and staff alike were left stunned on Friday when the pair joked about having a Great Week live on air.

Hughes and Robach kicked off GMA3 with a subtle joke about the headline-making week they’ve had.

Hughes started off the show, telling everyone: “Hey there, everyone, welcome to GMA3: What You Need to Know on this Friday. You know, it’s too bad it’s Friday.”

He and Robach both chuckle as she quickly replied: “Is it?”

Still laughing, Hughes sarcastically explained: “It’s been a Great Week. I just want it to keep going and going and going. Just enjoy.”

“Oh, speak for yourself,” Robach told him. “I am very excited about the weekend.”

She added: “And I’m sure everybody else is, too. We all love our Fridays around here. Some of us do, at least.”

Robach has reportedly moved out of her US$5.2M marital home, and over the weekend she was pictured going on an epic shopping trip at a well-known department store.

In pictures obtained exclusively byThe US Sun, Robach was caught standing on the New York City streets holding a couple of massive TJ Maxx (known as TK Maxx in Australia) shopping bags.

It appeared Robach went shopping at the discount department store to prepare to move into her new temporary home.

Her daughter tagged along, but her ex-husband Andrew Shue, and her rumoured fling, GMA co-host Hughes, were nowhere to be seen.

However, many wonder if the “TJ” in “TJ Maxx” could bare any reference to her new man.

This story appeared in The US Sun and is reproduced with permission.