Carol Kirkwood is leaving the BBC mainly because she feels it’s the right time in her life to step away, spend more time with her husband, and enjoy new personal projects after nearly three decades on air.

Why Is Carol Kirkwood Leaving the BBC?

Carol Kirkwood has explained that her decision is personal rather than driven by any behind‑the‑scenes drama.

Key reasons she’s given:

  • She wants to spend more time with her husband, Steve, saying they often feel like “ships that pass in the night” due to her early‑morning schedule.
  • After more than 25 years at the BBC (joining in 1998 and fronting BBC Breakfast weather since 2010), she feels it is the “right moment to step away.”
  • She has joked she doesn’t want to still be doing the weather “with a zimmer frame” or when she “can’t reach the Northern Isles anymore,” hinting at stepping back as she nears retirement age.
  • She’s keen to enjoy lie‑ins, travel more, and focus on writing more books and other personal projects.

In her on‑air announcement she said she loves her job, her colleagues, and the viewers, but that this “hasn’t been an easy decision” and that it simply “feels like the right moment to step away.”

What She’s Said About Her Future

  • She plans to devote more time to her “wonderful” or “gorgeous” husband Steve and enjoy a more relaxed life away from the 3 a.m. alarms.
  • She intends to keep writing novels and has hinted at “other projects” and more travelling together.
  • She has made clear she is leaving BBC Breakfast/the BBC on good terms and feels it has been an “absolute privilege” to present the weather.

When Is She Leaving?

  • She announced her departure live on BBC Breakfast in late January 2026, becoming emotional on the red sofa with co‑hosts Jon Kay and Sally Nugent.
  • She is set to leave around Easter, with her final day on air reported as 1 April 2026.

TL;DR: Carol Kirkwood isn’t leaving the BBC because of scandal or a fallout; she’s stepping away after more than 25 years so she can enjoy more time with her husband, travel, write books, and leave on a high while she still loves the job.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.