Holly Willoughby determined to stay on This Morning and ‘ride out’ the scandal, says insider
HOLLY Willoughby is reportedly determined to stay on This Morning for as long as she can and “ride out” Phillip Schofield’s affair scandal.
Phillip, 61, initially quit the ITV daytime show after 21 years over a growing feud with pal and co-star Holly following his brother’s sex abuse trial.
Days later he made a bombshell revelation about the “consensual on-off relationship” with a teen colleague – and quit ITV altogether.
Holly, 42, is due to return to the This Morning sofa on June 5 after her half-term break, and is hoping to withstand the storm after slamming Phil for “lying” to her.
A source told the Mirror: “Holly wants to stay at This Morning as long as she can, and hopes to ride out the scandal.
“Other stars like Stephen Mulhern are being approached to fill in for Phil when she returns. Some are reluctant to go in and face angry viewers.
“Holly is determined to stay put – the only reason she would leave now is if This Morning is axed. She has absolutely no plans to leave.”
It comes as one big brand pulled its sponsorship deal with This Morning.
The Sun has also revealed Holly was pictured with Phil and his young lover at a This Morning event in 2018.
Shamed Phil was seen with the ITV runner, with whom he had an affair behind his wife’s back, as Holly laughed and walked behind them in 2018.
Staff sources say his closeness to the assistant was raising eyebrows as he insisted only he would help with his wardrobe and food.
An insider said: “It was odd — suddenly this new young staff member was glued to Phillip’s side.
“It was made clear to all other staff he was Phillip’s chosen aide — even though at times Phillip was quite abrasive towards him.”
Holly has also broken her silence and said Phillip lied to her about the affair, insisting she confronted him over the claims.
She branded his deception “very hurtful” in a statement on Saturday night.
She said on Instagram: “It’s taken time to process yesterday’s news.
“When reports of this relationship first surfaced, I asked Phil directly if this was true and was told it was not.
“It’s been very hurtful to now find out that this was a lie.”
Read more on Phillip Schofield:
- Phillip Schofield admitted he had affair with a much younger male This Morning employee,
- Schofield apologised to his wife Stephanie Lowe,
- Read Schofield’s statement in full,
- The star’s agency revealed why they dropped him,
- Schofield resigned from ITV and stepped down from presenting the British Soap Awards,
- Eamonn Holmes spoke out before launching another attack on Schofield,
- Rylan Clark shared a cryptic post hours after the affair bombshell.
An ITV spokesman said: “We are deeply disappointed by the admissions of deceit made by Phillip Schofield.
“The relationships we have with those we work with are based on trust. Philip made assurances to us which he now acknowledges were untrue and we feel badly let down.
“We accept his resignation from ITV and therefore can confirm that he will not be appearing on ITV as had previously been stated.”
It’s understood the younger man, who was a teen when he met Schofield, is not a public figure and did not want the relationship to be revealed.
In a statement, Schofield said he’s “deeply sorry” for the affair which he said was “unwise, but not illegal”.
Earlier yesterday ITV issued a statement saying it investigated allegations of the affair in 2020 but that Schofield and his young lover had both lied.
Holly — plus show stand-ins Alison Hammond, 48, and Rochelle Humes, 34 — were all said to be considering their futures yesterday.