Rhea Santos makes surprise 'Unang Hirit' appearance on Ivan Mayrina's live broadcast in Canada

Viewers of Unang Hirit were treated to a surprise reunion when former Kapuso journalist and TV host Rhea Santos appeared live from Vancouver, Canada during Ivan Mayrina’s coverage of the Philippine delegation’s visit to the country.

While Ivan’s report focused on newly signed agreements between the Philippines and Canada covering areas such as free trade, defense and security, and energy, the segment took a lighter turn when he interviewed Rhea about her experience as a Filipino migrant in Canada and the contributions of Filipinos in the country.

The unexpected appearance quickly turned into a nostalgic reunion for the longtime broadcast colleagues, who also recreated their iconic spiel from the former GMA program “Pinoy Abroad.”

Back in the Unang Hirit studio, hosts reacted with excitement after the clip was shown on air.

“Napaka-nostalgic. Nakakakilabot. ‘Di ba?” Suzie Entrata-Abrera said.

Arnold Clavio asked the pair about the public’s reaction to seeing them together again.

“Oo nga, ang dami pa nakakaalala,” Ivan replied. “Tsaka ‘yun ‘yung pinag-usapan namin ni Rhea kanina, mari-realize mo talaga edad mo. Kasi ‘yung mga comments nila, ‘Ay, pinapanood ko po kayo nung elementary ako.’”

For Rhea, the reunion became even more meaningful after realizing how long they had known each other.

“Pero alam mo, ang nakakakilabot talaga, nung na-realize namin, kasi we started with GMA July 1st. Tapos kahapon, pagdating ni Ivan, sabi namin, tagal na nating magkakilala, ‘no?” Rhea said.

“So it's been 26 years of pagkakaibigan, of friendship, of working together. Galing, ano?”

Mariz Umali joined in on the fun, congratulating Rhea on being named evening host of CityNews Vancouver and teasing the pair about the attention their reunion received.

“Lahat kinilig. Cute kilig lang naman,” Mariz said.

Toward the end of the interview, Rhea thanked Kapuso viewers for continuing to support them despite their different career paths.

“I was trained well by ‘Unang Hirit,’” Rhea said.

After 19 years working on "Unang Hirit," Rhea exited the show in 2019 to study Broadcast and Online Journalism at the British Columbia Institute of Technology.

During her visit in 2023, she said she and her family had been granted permanent resident status in Canada. —Carby Rose Basina/JCB, GMA News