Holly Willoughby set to return to This Morning duties following Schofield exit
T
his Morning presenter Holly Willoughby is because of return to the couch on Monday alongside Josie Gibson because the ITV present continues to face controversy within the wake of Phillip Schofield’s departure.
Willoughby, 42, has been on a two week half-term break following the shock departure of her former co-host Schofield and his subsequent revelation of an affair with a youthful ITV male worker.
Her return to presenting duties was confirmed on the finish of Friday’s episode of This Morning, which was hosted by Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary, and that Gibson will probably be filling in as co-host.
The Sun newspaper has since reported that Willoughby is planning to deal with the Schofield controversy on the present, telling viewers how tough it has been behind the scenes.
It comes after Schofield stated he “didn’t tell anybody” about his affair together with his former This Morning colleague, confirming Willoughby “did not know” in a tell-all interview with BBC’s Amol Rajan.
Similarly in his interview with the Sun, the 61-year-old presenter apologised to Willoughby for mendacity to her about his relationship, saying: “I’ve lost my best friend”.
He added: “I let her (Holly) down. I let that entire show down. I let the viewers down.
“Holly did not know (about the affair) and she was one of the first texts that I sent, to say: ‘I am so, so sorry that I lied to you’.
“She didn’t reply and I understand why she didn’t reply as well. So yeah, if anyone is in any way linking Holly to this, that is absolutely, wholly untrue.”
The duo, who had introduced the present collectively since 2009 and in addition co-hosted Dancing On Ice earlier than Schofield resigned from ITV, had been open about their shut friendship over time.
Willoughby’s return comes because the ITV present has been stricken by allegations of “toxicity”, together with from former This Morning presenter Eamonn Holmes who has alleged there was a “total cover-up” over the Schofield affair.
The present’s former resident physician, Dr Ranj Singh, additionally hit out at a “toxic” tradition, saying he raised considerations about “bullying and discrimination” two years in the past when he labored there and afterwards felt like he was “managed out” for whistleblowing.
In a letter from ITV boss Dame Carolyn McCall to Parliament on Wednesday, she stated an exterior evaluation carried out following a criticism made by Dr Ranj discovered “no evidence of bullying or discrimination”.
Meanwhile, former This Morning head of news Emily Maddick, who labored on the present from September to December 2019, claimed she stop the programme because of “bullying, sexism and a toxic culture of fear and intimidation”.
On Saturday, This Morning editor Martin Frizell advised a Sky News reporter to “read between the lines” amid claims of toxicity, including: “I think there’s some scores being settled.”
Dame Carolyn has been known as to a parliamentary committee on June 14 to reply questions in regards to the broadcaster’s method to safeguarding and criticism dealing with following Schofield’s exit.
On Wednesday, she confirmed the broadcaster had instructed barrister Jane Mulcahy KC of Blackstone Chambers to hold out an exterior evaluation of the information.