Ellie Costello is usually live on air in Britain on a weekday morning, long before most of the country has fully woken up. She is cool and collected as she leads viewers through the day’s first news stories. In this job, you need to be clear under pressure, be able to change your tone quickly, and be present while things are still happening. For many watchers, she looks like someone they see at breakfast every day. Behind the scenes, though, she has a story of steady ambition, newsroom discipline, and a career that has been shaped by both reporting from the field and hosting from a desk.
Ellie Costello is not a famous person in the usual sense of the word. She is a working journalist whose name has grown over time through her reporting, live broadcasting, and ability to connect with people. Still, her growing fame at GB News and the public talks about her personal experiences have brought more attention to her life, her career, and what it’s really like to be a TV host today.
Early Life and Background
Ellie Costello grew up in Essex, a county in the southeast of England that has given rise to many famous people but still feels like a normal part of British life. Aside from her time at university, she has said that Essex has been home for most of her life. This sense of place has shaped how she sees the world.
Not much is known about her family history, and she has kept a lot of her private life from the public. No one is sure what her parents do for a living or if she has siblings. This is a deliberate choice made by many journalists who like to keep personal history separate from work identity.
What is more clear is that Costello’s early years were not marked by easy access to TV or media circles. Instead, she followed a more typical path into British journalism, one that relies on education, persistence, and first-hand experience in a newsroom rather than connections in the industry.
Schooling and First Goals
Costello went to the University of Southampton to study English Literature, which shows that he was interested in stories, language, and analysis from a young age. In the UK, many writers start their careers with an English degree, which teaches them how to write and think critically rather than how to do technical reporting.
She went to City, University of London to get a master’s degree in broadcast journalism after finishing her undergraduate degree. Many people think that program is one of the best ways for British journalists to learn how to work in a newsroom while also learning about the law and ethics. Radio, TV, and digital reporting are some of the skills that students learn. They often produce live broadcasts and work under tight deadlines.
Her choice to go that way shows that she has had a clear goal from the start. It’s not by accident that some people become broadcast journalists; they have to go through specific training and there is a lot of competition for roles. Costello was ready to work in one of the most difficult fields in the country by the time she finished her college studies.
Beginning at the BBC
Costello’s first job was at the BBC World Service, a global broadcasting platform known for putting a focus on accuracy, clarity, and reaching people all over the world. As a young journalist, you have to be able to quickly change to new situations and use good editorial judgement.
Reporters who work for the World Service often have to cover global stories for a wide range of audiences. This can help them get better at explaining complicated issues in a way that everyone can understand. Information, context, and credibility are what matter. Personality doesn’t play a big role here. Costello’s measured speaking style and view of news as something that needs to be both clear and accurate are likely shaped by that early experience.
After that, she moved on to the Victoria Derbyshire show, a BBC news and current events show known for focusing on social issues and stories that are interesting to people. This change meant a shift from covering the whole world to telling more personal stories about the UK. She was able to learn new skills thanks to the show’s sympathetic, inquisitive, and often emotionally grounded tone.
Creating a Voice for Reporting
As part of the Victoria Derbyshire programme, Costello worked on stories that needed both persistence and care. As part of her portfolio, she included reports about social media abuse, online harassment, and personal testimony. These stories weren’t just based on catchy headlines; they also relied on interviews, trust, and being careful with people who were easily hurt.
She changed the way she reports news during this important time in her career. She stopped only reading about politics and breaking news and started reading stories that look at how events affect people’s lives. That balance between serious news and real-life stories would later shape her work as a writer and host.
She then got noticed, and according to her professional accounts, she was called a “Rising Star” by the BBC. Even though these kinds of labels are usually not very official, they do imply that her work was noticed within the company, which is hard to do in a big newsroom.
Going to GB News
Costello started working for GB News as a South-East reporter in May 2021. He was one of the first people to work for the channel a few months before it opened. GB News came into the UK media market as a challenger channel, aiming to compete with well-known networks like Sky News and the BBC.
There are both chances and risks when you join a new channel. On the one hand, it helps journalists grow quickly as the company grows. But on the other hand, it puts them in a place where every editorial choice is closely watched. Because Costello was a regional reporter, she had to go out into the field a lot to cover events in the southeast of England.
In her early jobs, she had to report live from big national events and help news stories come together. During this time in her career, she became more of a reporter instead of just a show host, which is something that still affects how she does her job today.
Change to being a national host
Over time, Costello moved up in GB News, from reporting from the field to more important jobs as a host. It was easy for her to do studio work because she was good at live broadcasts, interviews, and staying calm under pressure.
The time she spent on breakfast TV was a big turning point in her life. Breakfast shows need a different set of skills because they have to mix serious news with light-hearted segments and conversation, and keep viewers interested. Presenters have to quickly switch between topics while keeping the same tone.
Costello became a regular on GB News Breakfast and eventually took on the job of host five days a week. She has co-hosted with well-known people like Eamonn Holmes and Stephen Dixon, putting her in a group with both experienced and younger hosts.
Big jobs and reporting from the ground up
Costello’s work has stayed closely tied to reporting, even though she has started to host shows. She has reported on a number of important events, such as the death of Queen Elizabeth II, which she did from outside Windsor Castle as the news came in.
She was also one of the reporters who were there when MP Sir David Amess was killed. This was a story that was important to the whole country and also personal to her because it happened in the southeast. Reporting on these kinds of tasks needs to be done carefully, especially right after something upsetting happens.
As part of her job, she has also written about court cases, protests, and changes in politics. These things help her credibility as a journalist and show that her job is more than just reading headlines. It also involves gathering and analysing information.
The Trouble with Stalking
It became public knowledge that Costello had been stalked by a guy she had never met for 16 months. This was one of the hardest times in her life. The trouble started after a business meeting over Zoom, showing that even normal work can have unintended consequences.
The stalking went from sending her unwanted messages online to doing things in real life, like sending her unwanted items and showing up in places related to her job. Costello later said that the experience was very upsetting and made him feel anxious, scared, and like he was always being watched.
The person who did it was eventually found guilty and given a suspended sentence and a restraining order. Costello chose to talk about what happened in public, not to get attention for herself but to show how serious stalking is and how important it is to report it right away.
A lot of people, especially women in public jobs, could relate to what she said. It also brought up the risks of being seen in the digital age, where it can be harder to keep personal boundaries.
Personal life and getting married
A wedding was held at Chelsea Old Town Hall in London in April 2025 to marry Gerard Durkan officially. The event got a lot of media attention, which shows how well-known she is becoming as a TV host.
In late 2023, the couple stated that they were getting married. The wedding was described in news reports as a small, happy event with family and friends. Costello hasn’t said much about her relationship because she wants to keep it private, even though a lot of people are interested.
The way she handles her personal life is typical of writers in general. Actors and entertainers often make a living by being seen by a lot of people. Journalists, on the other hand, try to keep their personal lives separate from their work lives. Costello has mostly gone in that direction, talking about important events without making them into ongoing public stories.
Image in public and in the media
Since Costello is not a famous person, her public image comes from her job as a broadcaster. She is known for being calm on camera, speaking clearly, and being able to handle live interviews with ease.
Due to her work with GB News, she is part of a certain group of British journalists. The channel has both loyal viewers and harsh critics, and its hosts are often involved in larger arguments about the standards of journalism and broadcasting.
Still, Costello’s image as a person is based more on how professional she is than on how controversial she is. She isn’t known for making strong political points or saying things that divide people. Her approach is more focused on starting conversations and giving people knowledge.
Net worth, income, and job security
There is no official number that shows how much Ellie Costello makes or how much she is worth. Estimates are sometimes posted online, but they are rarely backed up by solid financial information or reports that have been confirmed.
Since she is a TV host on a national news station, her pay is probably about average for mid- to high-level broadcasters in the UK. These numbers can be very different depending on the job, experience, and terms of the contract.
It’s smart to be careful when making these kinds of estimates. Any number that hasn’t been proven should be seen as a guess rather than a fact. There is no doubt that her career has hit a level of stability that puts her among well-known broadcast journalists.
How Ellie Costello Is Right Now
In 2026, Ellie Costello is still a key presenter on GB News Breakfast, where she can be seen most weekday mornings. Not only does she host, but she also does live interviews, reports breaking news, and interacts with the audience.
She is still working to cover big events and add to the channel’s overall output. Her career seems to be going in the right direction, with more responsibility and attention coming her way.
It’s interesting that her path shows how news is changing in general. Presenters today are expected to be able to switch between reporting, presenting, and digital engagement. That’s a good way to describe Costello’s career.
Questions People Ask Often
What does Ellie Costello do?
Ellie Costello is a British TV host and reporter who is best known for her work at GB News. She started her job at the BBC and went on to work as a national reporter and host of a breakfast show. She does both field news and studio hosting as part of her job.
Does Ellie Costello have a husband?
Gemard Durkan is Ellie Costello’s husband. After saying they were going to get married in 2023, they did so in London in April 2025. After these public events, she has kept most of the details of her relationship a secret.
Ellie Costello, how old is she?
In 2025, Ellie Costello was said to be 31 years old. Many public records don’t have exact information about her date of birth, and she hasn’t made this a big part of her resume.
What does GB News’ Ellie Costello do?
Costello is a host on GB News Breakfast, where she helps run the morning show. As part of her job, she reports the news, talks to guests, and walks people through what’s happening each day.
What happened with the case of Ellie Costello being stalked?
Costello was followed by a man for more than a year. He first contacted her after they had worked together. The person was found guilty and given a restraining order. She later told other people about what happened to bring attention to stalking.
In how much money does Ellie Costello have?
The public doesn’t know how much she is worth. There are estimates online, but they aren’t backed up by solid proof, so you should be careful with them.
In conclusion
If you look at Ellie Costello’s work, you can see how she rose to fame slowly over time. She went from going to school to working for a national broadcasting company by combining reporting experience with skills she learned on the job. That path shows how modern journalism works, where credibility is earned over time rather than given right away.
People know her from her work on GB News Breakfast, but it’s her background as a reporter that makes her important. She knows how news works because she has worked in the field as well as in the office.
The problems she’s had in her personal life, like being stalked, have given her public story another layer. They show that behind the polished picture of a host is a person who has to deal with the same risks and pressures that come with being well-known in the media today.
Costello is still part of a generation of journalists who are changing what it means to be a broadcaster as her work goes on. Not only does she report the news, but she is also part of an industry that is changing and becoming less clear between reporter and host. That change is likely to affect not only her future but also what people expect from people who take the same path.
