AceShowbiz -

Like the marriage, "Jon & Kate Plus 8" is taking a break. Immediately after Jon and Kate Gosselin announced their separation on the June 22 episode, TLC released a statement that it will halt the production of the reality series and that the decision came from the network, not the couple.

"TLC continues to support the Gosselin family and will work closely with them to determine the best way to continue to tell their story as they navigate through this difficult time," the channel said in a statement. The measures are taken in order to give the family "time off to regroup" during the hiatus. Then "a modified schedule will be in place to support the family's transition."

The "Big Announcement" episode on Monday drew a record of 10.6 million viewers. Next week's episode will be a montage of clips on the couple's first 10 years of marriage. An all-new episode will be aired starting August 3 and viewers may expect some changes. The children will be staying in the family's $1.1 million house with the parents taking turns to stay with them.

Prior to the divorce announcement, TLC has ordered 40 episodes for the fifth season and so far only 6 have aired.

On a related news, The Associated Press has acquired the divorce paper filed by Kate who states that her marriage is "irretrievably broken." On Tuesday, June 23 the couple has started negotiating the terms of divorce and Kate is willing to "negotiate a fair and reasonable" settlement with Jon.

In his own statement, Jon reacted to the divorce petition. He stated, "To be honest, I was hurt by Kate's statement about the divorce. I have always done everything I can to protect our family. This weekend, I was home with the kids for four days, just being a dad. No nannies, just the kids and me."