Noli De Castro returning to ‘TV Patrol’ once again

Change is coming to ABS-CBN this first month of the year as Kabayan Noli De Castro is set to return to TV Patrol.

Beginning Monday, January 9, De Castro will resume his anchor duties at the Kapamilya evening newscast, joining its current lineup composed of Karen Davilla, Bernadette Sembrano and Henry Omaga Diaz.

De Castro’s TV Patrol comeback has been in the works since late last year, a source said, but they want to make it a momentous occasion, coinciding with the feast of the Black Nazarene on Monday, which the broadcaster-turned-politician used to cover.

De Castro left the newscast in October 2021 after announcing his intent to run for senator in the 2022 national elections. He would later withdraw his candidacy, saying in a statement, “Kasabay ng pagdarasal sa Poong Nazareno, napag-isip-isip kong mas makatutulong ako sa pagbibigay ng boses sa ating mga kababayan sa pamamagitan ng pamamahayag.”

De Castro first co-anchored TV Patrol in 1987. At the time, he was co-anchoring it with Mel Tiangco, Robert Arevallo, and later the late Frankie “Ka Kiko” Evangelista. 

He would then leave in 2001 after winning a Senate seat.

Following the reboot of ABS-CBN News in 2010, which saw the arrival of Ging Reyes as news chief, De Castro returned to the newscast, then sitting alongside his longtime colleagues Korina Sanchez and Ted Failon.