Natasha Kaplinsky pregnant

Natasha Kaplinsky three months pregnant

Britain's highest paid newsreader, Natasha Kaplinsky, is three months pregnant with her first child.

The 35-year-old is having a baby with her investment banker husband Justin Bower, who she met on a blind date in 2005. He proposed in April – just five weeks after they met – and the pair married in August that year.

News of Natasha's pregnancy comes just months after she secured a £1 million-a-year three-year contract to move from the BBC to become the face of Channel Five news.

She was already pregnant when she made her first appearance on Channel Five in February, and is now set to take a leave of absence, which will leave a marked void in the channel's coverage – Natasha has boosted ratings by 72% since she took the reins from her friend Kirsty Young.

Natasha's spokesman yesterday confirmed the pregnancy, but said Kaplinsky had not known about it when she switched channels as she signed the deal in October.

He said: 'I can confirm Natasha is pregnant and she's never been happier.'

Natasha herself hit the headlines in 2004, when she won Strictly Come Dancing and split with her boyfriend of 11 years after she was romantically linked with her dancing partner Brendan Cole.