CBC anchor Peter Mansbridge signs off for the final time

TORONTO – Peter Mansbridge ended his run as CBC’s main anchor Saturday saying he wasn’t a “fan of long goodbyes”, but was a “fan of long thank yous.”

“I thank the people that I work with,” Mansbridge said as he wrapped up CBC’s coverage of Canada 150 celebrations in Ottawa on Saturday.

“I have been extremely lucky over all this time to have worked in this place,” he said. “It has been just a fabulous experience.”

Earlier in the day Prime Minister Justin Trudeau dropped by where Mansbridge was broadcasting in Ottawa and paid tribute to the veteran anchor.

“Thank you for being a steady hand and a steady voice for us always through the years, we’re going to miss you,” Trudeau told Mansbridge.

Mansbridge anchored CBC’s “The National” for the final time Friday, saying it has been “quite the ride.”

“Thanks for watching all these years, it’s been quite the ride for me, but always a privilege to be a part of bringing the national story home to you from wherever that story may be,” said Mansbridge at the end of the hour-long show. “I can only hope you found it worthwhile, too. Goodbye.”

Mansbridge, 68, said in an interview this week that he didn’t intend to make a big fuss of his last appearance on the flagship newscast as anchor.

Mansbridge revealed his retirement plans last year. The CBC has not yet indicated how it will replace him.

The network ran a tribute to Mansbridge’s 50-year career in a segment broadcast on Thursday’s “The National” and has been paying tribute to him in some of its other programs during the past week.

Mansbridge has anchored the newscast since his predecessor Knowlton Nash stepped down in 1988.