Phillip Schofield’s perkiness has waned as he tries to ‘hide emotions’ from Holly Willoughby, say body language pro
PHILLIP Schofield is hiding “inner emotions” from Holly Willoughby and his confidence has “waned”, claims a body language expert.
The Sun first reported how the TV stars’ relationship is under strain, with the star confronting Holly, 42, in a tense phone call shortly after their rift was made public.
Phillip, 61, who has been part of This Morning for two decades, is now said to be a “shell of himself” and a recluse on set thanks to the “feud”.
After the pair’s intro on today’s show, body language expert Judi James told Fabulous: “Phil’s tungsten smile and industrial-strength perkiness seemed to take a dip on this second key outing since rumours have been rumbling.
“After an initial pose with Holly that involved some head tilt twinning that gave a hint some of their synchronicity was back, it looked very much as though it was Holly’s day for perky, playful fun while Phil adopted some of her less assured gestures of the day before in some sort of bizarre body language swap-shop.
“Phil was less splayed during their intro and instead of stuffing his hands into his pockets in a cocky-looking ritual he had them clasped in front, like Holly.”
Judi claims Holly seemed to be the more confident of the pair, while Phil seemed more “anxious.”
She explained: “It was Holly adopting the arm-splay comedy pose when Phil said her dress looked like a meadow, while Phil’s overall energy appeared dipped and his gestures became self-protective barriers.
“When he said ‘see you in a bit’ there was a hint of a sigh and when they next appeared sitting round a table it was Holly with the energy and signals of confidence while Phil’s furrowed brow and the way he seemed to be swallowing hard did suggest strong inner emotions.
“He sat with one arm crossed over his body and his feet tucked under his chair and even placed a finger over his lips at one point to take a less active role in the conversation.
“He then folded both arms onto the table in a barrier gesture but when his hands raised in a clasp at one point he was performing the same, anxious-looking finger pick ritual that Holly had been doing the day before.”
Phil has reportedly hired a lawyer after being “blindsided” by how public their fall out has become.
He also feared he would be axed by ITV after it emerged Holly, his TV partner of 14 years, was prepared to strike out alone on the show.
It’s understood Holly was left blind sided when Phil released an emotional statement on their feud without consulting her.
Holly and Phil will be on screen together until late July and then take a six-week summer break.
It is believed they will hold talks with ITV on how they can move forward before their return in September.
Since Holly and Phil’s last show together on Thursday, he has chosen to lie low.
Holly appeared stony-faced when seen on a trip out on Saturday.
Those close to Holly said she was “blindsided” by Phil’s emotional statement about their friendship last week, which confirmed the issues within their relationship.
Similarly, after Holly chose to remain silent those close to Phil said he felt hurt that she had failed to speak openly about him.
Phil lobbied for Holly to join This Morning as co-presenter when Fern Britton, 65, left the show.
Holly joined him in 2009 and the pair — who also co-host Dancing on Ice — have earned 12 National Television Awards between them.
Sources say issues have been quietly rumbling for some time and Holly has distanced herself from Phil off camera.
His absence following his paedophile brother’s recent court case has added to the strain.
A source said: “Holly adores This Morning and for the first time in 14 years she has made it clear that should Phil ever leave she would want to stay. They are separate entities.
“To those around them on set, it has become clear recently that Holly and Phil are not as close as they once were.
“Professionally you would have no idea there was anything going on because on camera they are acting exactly the same.
“But behind the scenes their relationship has cooled.
“Before there would be a lot of banter and camaraderie off camera but that has dwindled.”
Show staffers say the pair now do not seem to speak to each other unless on camera.