Studio 10‘s Denise Drysdale has claimed she was too moved by Anzac Day to say a proper farewell to departing co-host Ita Buttrose, fuelling rumours of a months-long spat between the two panellists.

Buttrose received special praise from co-hosts Joe Hildebrand and Sarah Harris following her Wednesday announcement she would be leaving the Channel Ten morning show after almost five years.

But Drysdale, who remained silent, made no comment on Buttrose’s departure, leading viewers to suggest there was lingering “tension” between the pair.

In a Thursday radio interview with 2DayFM, Drysdale attributed her on-air silence to an earlier segment on “war movies”.

“It was also because of Anzac Day. Having a close association with the Vietnam vets, that feeling gets stronger every year,” Drysdale said.

“It really gets me. As you get older, you get more emotional.”

Asked whether she would miss Buttrose following her exit from the show, Drysdale replied “no”.

Tensions between the two panelists reportedly erupted when Drysdale allegedly threw a bowl of brussels sprouts at Buttrose during the filming of a Christmas segment last year.

Questioned on how she felt following Buttrose’s departure, Drysdale jokingly said: “I’ve got a big bag of brussels sprouts and nothing to do with them.”

“I threw that brussels sprout because I’d got up at four in the morning to come in and do the Christmas song. And at about four o’clock in the afternoon, we’d had a couple of champagnes for lunch.”

Drysdale said the morning show was “not the same any more”, following the departure of former Studio 10 panelist Jess Rowe in March.

“Jess and I hit it off really, really well. And now Ita going, well – it’s a different show,” she explained.

Today we farewell the legendary @ItaButtrose, who has decided to leave #Studio10 to spend more time with her family & focus on her writing & charity work. pic.twitter.com/2WoOLA3wGJ

— Studio 10 (@Studio10au) April 24, 2018

In the Studio 10 segment announcing Buttrose’s departure on Wednesday, Drysdale only spoke up when Buttrose made a comment about needing to work on co-star Mr Hildebrand’s appearance.

“You want me to shave again … It’s the George Michael look,” Hildebrand said.

“He’s dead,” Drysdale said.

“He’s dead? Thank you, Denise,” Buttrose replied.

As for the reason for her exit, Buttrose said she planned to spend more time with her family and dedicate much of her time to writing fiction novels.

“I’ve got five grandchildren … I want to spend a bit more time with them. I’ve come to an agreement with a publisher to write a couple of books,” she said during the opening segment.

Studio 10 declined to comment on Buttrose’s departure and Buttrose could not be reached for further comment.