Piers Morgan's best ever 'Life Stories' interviews

Kate Garraway takes the reins on Life Stories this week as former host Piers Morgan exits his final ITV show.

The old Good Morning Britain colleagues met over the interview floor for Morgan's last ever episode, where he delved into Garraway's career and devastating time during the pandemic caring for husband Derek Draper.

Garraway is all set to go with her first interviewee, Charlotte Church, but with 20 series under Morgan's belt he certainly leaves with some tales to tell.

Read more: Kate Garraway says she didn't receive MBE for looking after Derek

Here are some of his most memorable Life Stories encounters.

Michael Parkinson (2019)

The king of chat shows found himself on the receiving end of probing questions when he agreed to an interview about his fascinating life in series 16.

As an old hand at getting the best lines out of celebrity interviews, you might expect him to deftly sidestep any difficult questions.

However, viewers' hearts broke as he cried over memories of the death of his father in 1975, with Morgan later revealing that they'd had to stop filming because he was so overcome with emotion.

Cheryl (2010)

The former Girls Aloud singer signed up to Life Stories at a particularly vulnerable time in her life, not long after splitting from first husband Ashley Cole.

She opened up on the raw emotion of finding out that the footballer had been cheating on her and held nothing back in talking about her devastation in the tear-soaked interview.

Mel B (2019)

Spice Girls always make for good interviewees, and none more so than the outspoken Mel B.

With stories to tell about her past relationship with Eddie Murphy and her terrible years in an abusive marriage to Stephen Belafonte, as well as her wild pop career, Morgan was never going to be short of topics to discuss with her.

Read more: Mel B still woken up by PTSD flashbacks of abusive marriage

However, the unexpected headline from the interview was Mel B revealing a fling she'd had with Spice Girls co-star Geri Halliwell, who didn't seem thrilled that the story had come out and also failed to mention it in her own 2010 Life Stories appearance.

Torvill and Dean (2013)

Much as Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean are national treasures and rightly beloved for their Olympic skating success, as well as their Dancing On Ice stardom, they're not exactly brimming with salacious showbiz stories.

In anyone else's hands, it could have been a rather dull episode - but expert interviewer Morgan managed to extract the Torvill and Dean scoop of their lives, that they'd once kissed at the back of a bus on their way home from a competition.

Elton John (2010)

Morgan drew in some of the biggest names in entertainment for his 20 series at the helm of Life Stories, bagging interviews with people you'd never expect to say yes - but no star was bigger than Elton John.

There is nobody in the world of showbiz that Elton doesn't know and he's not shy of falling out with any of them, so his interview was always going to be TV gold.

Read more: Rod Stewart and Elton John end three-year row

Interviewers brave enough to ask Elton the difficult questions are also few and far between, so this was a real Life Stories highlight and a fascinating glimpse into celebrity life.

Paul Gascoigne (2011)

Morgan never missed an opportunity to interview his sporting heroes, but one of the most unmissable over the years was with footballing legend Paul Gascoigne.

The former star's decline into addiction and mental health struggles has been well documented over the years, but here he got the chance to tell his heartbreaking story in his own words.

Caitlyn Jenner (2018)

Out of a family where nearly every person hits global headlines week in, week out, and with scores of reality series about their lives, Caitlyn Jenner is the most endlessly fascinating.

As Bruce Jenner she was an Olympic gold medallist decathlete, before starring in Keeping Up With the Kardashians as Kris Jenner's husband.

Read more: Piers Morgan says Gemma Collins got death threats when she was announced for Life Stories

In 2015, Jenner came out as a trans woman and between her gender transition journey, Olympic career and famous children and stepchildren, there would have been enough conversation to fill a whole series of Life Stories.

Barbara Windsor (2010)

Morgan had the opportunity to interview the late Dame Barbara Windsor about her incredible life just a few years before she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.

The Carry On and EastEnders star had a brush with the Krays in her early career, had romances with many a famous star, and knew pretty much everyone in showbusiness.

She also spoke movingly about her love for husband Scott Mitchell, 25 years her junior but a devoted partner who cared for her until her death in 2020.

Kate Garraway's Life Stories begins on Thursday at 9pm on ITV.

Watch: Piers Morgan shut down by Joan Collins over Meghan Markle question in Life Stories