InsideJapan News Network

Mona Yamamoto, the television news presenter, has announced she is to retire from public life to become a "working mother and housewife".

Ms Yamamoto, who is well known throughout Japan for her news-reading roles on News23 and Fuji TV, has made the announcement in a press release faxed to major media outlets across the nation, reports Japan Today.

In the note, she reveals that she has been "thinking deeply" about what she wants from life and thanked people she has worked with and the public.

The fax reads: "I have decided to accept the challenge of becoming a working mother and housewife and to lead a more regular life.

"I truly appreciate all of the support my colleagues and the public have kindly given me up until now. To all of those people, I wish to say a heartfelt thank you."

This is not the first time Ms Yamamoto has taken a break from news-reading. In 2006, it was revealed she was having an affair with politician Goshi Hosono, after which she stood down for two years.

Written by Susan Ballion