MORNING TV host Bryant Gumbel is giving his farewell interview not to his own network but to Barbara Walters.

The Walters-Gumbel sitdown was taped last Wednesday to air next Friday on “20/20” (10 p.m./Ch. 7) – Gumbel’s last day on “The Early Show” on CBS.

Gumbel’s fiancee, Hilary Quinlan, will also appear during the interview.

Gumbel is expected to discuss the circumstances of his departure from the third-place “Early Show,” which has yet to name a replacement.

CBS had been chasing Meredith Vieira, but she opted to remain at ABC as co-host of “The View” and as host of the syndicated “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.”

Gumbel is now expected to focus on his HBO show, “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.”