South-African stand-up comedian Trevor Noah has announced his exit from ‘The Daily Show’ after seven years as host.

On Thursday, the comedian addressed the live audience about his decision to leave the show.

“I realised that after the seven years, my time is up, but in the most beautiful way. I’ve loved hosting the show. It’s been one of my greatest challenges, one of my greatest joys,” Mr Noah stated. “I’ve loved trying to figure out how to make people laugh even when the stories are particularly shitty on the worst days.”

The stand-up comedian who took over the show from Jon Stewart seven years ago explained that he had missed a whole other part of his life, comedy tours and exploring other cultures and languages.

“But after seven years, I feel like it’s time, you know. I spent two years in my apartment, not on the road, stand up was done, and when I got back out there again, I realised there’s another part of my life that I want to carry on exploring,” Mr Noah explained. “I miss learning other languages. I miss going to other countries and putting on shows, being everywhere doing everything.”

Mr Noah, who recently made news for his budding romance with American star Dua Lipa, thanked the network for believing “in this random comedian nobody knew on this side of the world,” pointing out that his exit is not immediate.

Noah is one of the recent major late-night show hosts leaving primetime television. 

In April, James Corden announced his exit from the Late Late Show, set for next year, Conan O’Brien of the Tonight Show also said his goodbye last year.