George Stephanopoulos is delighted by new GMA co-star's presence during difficult week

George Stephanopoulos has been the only regular Good Morning America anchor on the show this week, with Robin Roberts and Michael Strahan both taking time off work. The long-running host has been joined by various subs throughout the last five days, and was delighted on Friday's show to sit alongside White House Correspondent Mary Bruce.

    George Stephanopoulos has been the only regular Good Morning America anchor on the show this week, with Robin Roberts and Michael Strahan both taking time off work. 

    The long-running host has been joined by various subs throughout the last five days, and was delighted on Friday's show to sit alongside White House Correspondent Mary Bruce. 

    George was animated and chatty as he chatted to Mary, along with Whit Johnson and Sam Champion, about the morning headlines, which heavily focused on Donald Trump and President Joe Biden's televised presidential debate last night. 

    Mary was the perfect sub for the topic, as ABC's Chief White House Correspondent. Mary and George go back a long way, with Mary working as a segment producer for George's show, . 

    She has been working with ABC News since 2006, and started off as a desk assistant before making her way up. 

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    George, meanwhile, has been working on GMA since 2009, having relocated from Washington D.C. to New York City after getting the gig. 

    The best-selling author has had a difficult week but has been putting on a brave face at work. On Wednesday, he took a leave of absence from the show to attend his father's funeral. 

    It was announced last week that George's beloved dad, Reverend Robert George Stephanopoulos, passed away aged 89 on June 19. 

    During the time of his death, George and his wife Ali Wentworth were on vacation in Europe. Shortly after his passing, Ali took to Instagram to pay tribute to her father-in-law, giving an insight into his pivotal role in their family and the close bond they shared. 

    She wrote: "Reverend Robert George Stephanopoulos, PhD, Dean Emeritus Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity passed away on June 19th. He was my father-in-law and I loved him dearly. "He married us. He laughed with us. He debated our daughters. He praised my Thanksgiving turkey. He loved ice cream. He was everyone’s council. 

    "He married or baptized almost every Greek on the eastern seaboard. He was held in the highest regard. He will be missed by so many. Sagapo Father Bob." 

    Ali shared a number of photos of Reverend Robert to accompany her tribute, which were all taken from her and George's wedding day in 2001. 

    George's father married the couple, as they tied the knot just two months after getting engaged. 

    The sad news follows on just a year after Robert's wife, Presvytera Nikki, died. Robert's touching obituary online reads in part: "Over more than half a century in the ministry, Father Robert touched countless lives. He counseled young couples contemplating marriage, celebrated their weddings and baptisms, cried with them at the funerals of loved ones. His legacy lives through them, his surviving children Mother Agapia, George, Marguarite and Andrew - his daughter in law, Alexandra Wentworth, and his grandchildren Elliott and Harper Stephanopoulos."

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