Furious Holly Willoughby makes Phillip Schofield vow after humiliation of This Morning return
HOLLY Willoughby has vowed to never publicly address the Phillip Schofield scandal again after breaking her silence yesterday.
She returned to This Morning and in a carefully-worded statement mentioned her ex co-star by name only once.
Holly, 42, told viewers she felt let down after Phillip, 61, lied about his affair with a young show runner which led to him leaving ITV.
The presenter — just back from a break in Portugal and wearing a sleeveless white dress — touched fellow presenter Josie Gibson’s hand before speaking to viewers.
She said: “It feels very strange sitting here without Phil and I imagine you might be feeling a lot like I have — shaken, troubled, let down, worried for the well-being of people on all sides of what’s been going on, and full of questions.”
She added: “You, me and all of us at This Morning gave our love and support to someone who was not telling the truth, who acted in a way that they themselves felt that they had to resign from ITV and step down from a career that they loved. That is a lot to process.
“And it’s equally hard to see the toll that it’s taken on their own mental health.
“I think what unites us all now is a desire to heal for the health and well-being of everyone.
“I hope that as we start this new chapter and get back to a place of warmth and magic that this show holds for all of us, we can find strength in each other.”
Holly was branded “cold” by some viewers afterwards.
But insiders said her statement showed how upset she was.
A source said: “This is the only time Holly will ever speak about Phil and what has happened.
“She still feels incredibly angry and upset by his actions and is very much still trying to get her head around it.
“It took a lot for Holly to compose herself and speak about what has gone on in the last few weeks.
“But people expecting her to sit and pour her heart out will be waiting for a long time.
“Holly is upset that Phil, who she believed to be a very close friend, lied to her about his affair.
“She is angry and that will take a long time for her to come to terms with. “
Last night ITV confirmed Holly’s statement was already the sixth most watched video across all its platforms with 6.3 million views.
A 90-second video of the statement posted on Twitter by This Morning had 8.1 million impressions.
Holly ended her piece-to-camera by paying credit to Josie and fellow presenters, Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary and Craig Doyle — who will host the show with her tomorrow and on Thursday.
She then turned to hug Josie and told her: “I need a Josie cuddle.” Josie replied: “All we can do now is be the family that we are.”
A number of This Morning viewers said they believed Holly’s statement and praised her online.
Krishna Ellis wrote: “That was so hard for Holly to do, I was nearly in tears.”
Another Twitter user, Scott Thompson, added: “If you don’t believe Holly Willoughby, then change the channel. Not that hard. I for one, support her 100% and wish her the best in what is a tough situation.”
Others said they felt the statement was too orchestrated. Viewer Richard Watkins said: “Nothing we didn’t know already, a bit of a cold statement from Holly.
“I reckon she’ll be off to the BBC once the summer break comes along if not sooner.”
Some commented on her choice of dress. One viewer joked: “Today on This Morning Holly Willoughby, in her angelic white frock, is all smiles as she delivers a Mortal Kombat fatality move on ol’ Phil.”
Holly went on to interview ex-EastEnders actress Jo Joyner and pop star Adam Lambert.
She danced with Josie as they hosted prize game Spin To Win.
The pair were also in fits of laughter as they took part in a weights session with personal trainer Simon Waterson.
Body language expert Judi James told The Sun Holly was holding back tears during her speech.
She said: “Her breathing sounded shallow and stressed and she used an in-breath to suggest regret when she spoke of the ‘toll on Phil’s mental health.’ ”
Judi added: “Holly’s body language through the first half of the show suggested vulnerability and some suppressed anxiety.”
But she said Holly’s confidence then seemed to return.
Judi said: “The exercise segment saw her begin to take the lead role more. Holly also began to use precision gestures when she asked questions, another cue to suggest she was getting back on top of her game.”
Those close to Phillip said he was too upset to watch Holly’s return.
He has stepped out of the public eye since speaking to The Sun about his departure from the show.
A source added: “At some point in the future it is likely Holly will reach out to Phil and they can discuss what happened.
“It’s a question of time and everyone having the space to process what’s happened.”