Gayle King recalls catching her husband cheating on her with a friend: 'The only person I told was Oprah'
Gayle King recalls catching her husband cheating on her with a friend: 'The only person I told was Oprah'
Leigh BlickleyWed, May 27, 2026 at 3:11 PM UTC
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Gayle King
Credit: Jamie McCarthy/GettyKey Points
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Gayle King opens up about her ex-husband's cheating scandal on Call Her Daddy.
She said she caught her ex with a friend in her bedroom when her kids were just toddlers.
King called Oprah Winfrey right away, who gave her sound advice on the relationship.
Gayle King opened up about the moment she found her husband in her bedroom with another woman on the Call Her Daddy podcast.
The CBS Mornings host sat down with Alex Cooper for an interview on Wednesday and shared stories about her life, career, and long-lasting friendship with Oprah Winfrey. One pivotal moment in their BFF history came in 1990 when King, 71, found her now ex-husband, William Bumpus, getting intimate with a friend — while her 2- and 3-year-old children were home with their nanny.
The first person she called was Winfrey, 72.
"I came home and caught him," King began, launching into the story of how she discovered a close friend in her bedroom wearing her bath towel after a work trip was canceled.
She told the woman, "'I can't believe that you are here and that you are doing this. I can't believe that you are doing this.' And I even said, 'I thought we were friends!' It sounded so pitiful."
The embarrassment escalated soon enough when the police showed up after King triggered the house alarm when she returned home. As a local news anchor, the cops were slightly starstruck and asked for her autograph.
"I wanted to say, 'Could you take out the trash?' But I didn't," King told Cooper. "And I didn't want them to know because it's a type of thing that they screw up, but you're thinking, 'I don't want anybody to know when I haven't done anything wrong.' I just wanted to get them in and out as quickly as possible."
King reiterated that her biggest concern was protecting her kids — daughter Kirby, now 40, and son Will, now 39 —and keeping people from finding out about her husband's affair. Her first thought, however, was to call the other woman's husband.
"She was married, and I said, 'I'm calling him,' her husband. And [Bumpus] goes, 'Don't call because they have a good marriage.' [I said], 'They have a good marriage? The girl's pajama bottoms are in my bed,'" King recalled.
Gayle King on 'Call Her Daddy'
Credit: Call Her Daddy/YouTube
She noted Bumpus kept begging her not to call the husband before taking the woman to the train station. That's when King called Winfrey.
"I called Oprah, and Oprah goes, 'Let me get this straight. He left you there alone and went with her?' I know your mouth is open," King told Cooper, 31. "And she said, 'Oh girl, you don't even know how bad this is.' And I'm going, 'Yeah, but he said they had a good marriage.' Stupid."
King said she confided in Winfrey over her mom and three sisters. "The only person I told was Oprah. The only person," King said. "And then she said, 'Well, call her husband.' I go, 'You think I should call?' [She said], 'Yes. Call.'"
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Two hours after she discovered the affair, King called the woman's husband — only his wife had gotten in his ear first.
"He said, 'She told me you would be calling. She said that you came home early unexpected, and you drew the wrong conclusion. And she told me you would call and say that you thought they were having an affair.' Masterful. Isn't that masterful?"
King noted the two were psychologists and tried to play a mind game with her, but she wasn't falling for it.
"I said, 'Okay. You think I should get some help? Does your wife have a pink satin pajama top? Does she have some green mint panties that go with that? And, oh, by the way ... there are semen stains in my bed. So am I delusional and out of touch with reality?' And then I said, 'Go f--- yourself,' and I hung up the telephone," she added, noting how proud she was of herself in that moment. "But it took over two hours and Oprah saying to me, 'Are you f---ing nuts? Call him!'"
King was married to Bumpus, an attorney, from 1982 to 1993. They tried to work things out following the incident and got back together a few times before King realized he was cheating again. "I would be out in the garage feeling the hood of the car to see if it was warm. I was going through his phone, and I thought, 'I don't wanna live like this,'" King told Cooper.
After King brought up the cheating scandal in a 2016 interview, Bumpus released a statement apologizing for his decision.
"I have been haunted with this life altering choice," the statement read. "Though I have dealt with this privately, I publicly apologize for the major transgression that dramatically changed all of our lives. I have nothing but the utmost respect for Gayle and how she handled herself with grace. Despite the situation, she kept our children, as well as my relationship and involvement with them, as a clear priority."
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He added, "Gayle was a great wife, an excellent mother and a fantastic co-parent. I am eternally grateful for all that she has done and continues to do to enrich my life and the lives of our incredible adult children. I continue to be a work in progress and have spent the last 26 years striving to be a better man and father. I applaud Gayle's continued phenomenal success and friendship!"
Of her ex-husband, King told Cooper they now see each other at family events. "I just saw him yesterday because [it was] my grandchild's christening. I just saw him. He ain't looking so good. Nope."
King added, "I am in such a good place that at the weddings and christenings, I'm like, 'Can I get you anything?' Him and [his] girlfriend. She seems very nice and lovely. 'Can I get you guys anything? I'm so glad you came.'"
on Entertainment Weekly
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
