Amy Robach and T.J. Holmes initially broke their silence after being fired from “Good Morning America” when their romance became public.
Now, they spoke candidly about the situation for the first time Tuesday, using the launch of their new podcast, “Amy and T.J.,” as the forum for their conversation.
“We lost the jobs we love because we love each other,” Holmes said, after calling their romance a “beautiful relationship.”
They spoke about their rough exit from ABC and said, “That is the bottom line and that is why we are here now.”
Robach credited their debut on the podcast, saying this was “the first time we get to say what happened and where we are today” after having “gone through a year of hell.”
“In the end, all of us are always rooting for love,” she said. “It doesn’t always happen when you want it to happen. And it’s undeniable when it’s real and it’s something you have to navigate and it’s not easy.”
Robach addressed the complicated matter by noting, “relationships are hard. They’re messy. They’re not perfect. We have fought for love, and I can say I have never been happier. I am with my best friend.”
Holmes chimed in to say, “Bottom line we have not said this. I’m in love with this woman and she’s in love with me and we are planning a life together.” He then took a moment to clarify what he perceived to be a misunderstanding that was circulating about their relationship having unfolded as an affair.
“To be clear, we were outed as being in a relationship, but everyone else thought we were being outed as adulterers — being outed as cheating on our spouses — and it wasn’t the case because the odd thing is, the day those pictures were taken and the day that article was released, we both at that point were in divorce proceedings,” Holmes said.
Robach explained what they went through when the news began broadcasting they were having an affair.
“We had attorneys, mediators. We were in the middle of divorces,” she said, noting her husband had moved out of their home three months prior to being outed. They told fans they had planned to issue a joint statement, but the media took over their narrative. (RELATED: Marilee Fiebig, Wife Of ‘Good Morning America’ Anchor T.J. Holmes, Breaks Silence On His Affair With Amy Robach)
“Today is a special day. It’s almost apropos that we would have this podcast air on December 5th because December 5th last year, exactly one year ago today, was the day we were told not to come into work,” Robach said.