“Live’s” Mark Consuelos breaks silence on Kelly Ripa’s “retirement” plans after she announces exit from the talk show after 22 years

LIVE with Kelly & Mark star Mark Consuelos revealed Kelly Ripa’s plans for the future in a recent interview.

Mark, 52, praised his wife Kelly, 52, and spoke about her potentially leaving Live during a meeting with him Entertainment tonight.

5

5

The All My Children alum confessed his love to his Slash Morning Show co-star wife and revealed details about where she stands on the ABC series.

Although she admitted a month ago that she was “with great interest” thinking about retiring, she won’t be doing so any time soon.

“I think it’s a real thing,” Mark told the news outlet. “She’s been there for 23 years.”

“I don’t think it will happen any time soon,” he added. “I know she’s having a good time, I’m having a really, really good time. But eventually, yes.”

He added: “If she actually decides to walk away, no one deserves it more than her.”

“She worked her butt off since she was 12 or 13 and got into the business when she was 18 and it’s been a long road,” he said. “[But] She’s having a lot of fun now.

The former soap opera actress has become a popular television host over the past two decades.

Chatting with purist Magazine, she was asked to explain how she manages “one of the most challenging and daunting jobs” of hosting a live show while being risk-averse, as she mentions in her memoir.

Kelly admitted: “I think my risk aversion is probably why I stayed in the same job for so long.

“There are other offers coming, but I like to stick with what I know.

“I am very steadfast in everything I do, and if you have me, you have me for life.”

NOT FINISHED YET

The TV personality then added that this doesn’t mean fans will see her as host of her talk show – which in the latest edition is titled “Live with Kelly and Mark” – forever.

She revealed: “Still, I don’t plan on working in this job for the rest of my life.

“I talk about retirement with great interest, but at the moment I am very happy, especially working with Mark.”

Later in the interview, Kelly shared how she and her husband Mark often talk together about their retirement plans.

The topic came up after the former soap opera star was asked if he was with his three children – Michael, 26; Lola, 22; and Joaquin, 20 – out of the house.

“I know there are women out there who are afraid of this, and I was afraid of it, and it’s so great,” she said.

Kelly added: “You rediscover yourself as a couple. We talk about vacation and where we want to retire. It’s a really exciting time.”

Kelly has been on the show since 2001, starting with the late Regis Philbin before sitting alongside Michael Strahan, 51, Ryan Seacrest, 48, and now her husband.

A few months before Kelly’s magazine interview in August, friend and regular Live guest host Ali Wentworth, 58, said it was unlikely Kelly would continue the show with anyone else after Mark.

ONE AND ONLY

Ali spoke exclusively to The US Sun at the 33rd Annual Colleagues Spring Luncheon and Oscar de la Renta Fashion Show at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in April.

The star, who is married to Good Morning America host George Stephanopoulos, 62, said: “I think they know what they’re doing.

“I think after having Strahan and then Ryan, it’s almost a given to have Mark, who by the way is a co-host all the time anyway.”

She continued: “And it feels like this is the last, final co-host.

“You can’t have your husband as a co-host and then someone else later. It feels like it’s going to stay that way for a while. That’s my guess.”

Ali added that it was difficult to deliver a hit show on a daily basis while maintaining a marriage.

“I think that’s a tough question because you’re putting your marriage, your personal relationship, at the center. “I mean, one of the things I will say about my husband is that we kind of stay in our lane and keep it separate,” she said.

The author continued, “And it will be interesting to see how they manage to blend their personal and professional lives in this way.”

5

5

5