Holly Willoughby says she feels ‘let down’ as she returns to This Morning for first time since Schofield scandal

Jun 05, 2023 at 10:44 AM

Holly Willoughby has mentioned she felt “let down” as she made her first This Morning look since her former co-presenter Phillip Schofield resigned over an “unwise, but not illegal” relationship with a youthful man.

As she returned to screens after occurring vacation, she mentioned she felt “shaken, troubled, let down,” and “worried for the wellbeing of people on all sides of what’s been going on”.

“We have given our love and support to someone not telling the truth,” she added.

Schofield, 61, resigned from ITV final month over the affair and has since insisted he “did not” groom the man, who the presenter mentioned was 20 years previous when their relationship started.

Willoughby, 42, started the present with the emotional assertion delivered straight to digital camera, whereas holding fingers with co-presenter Josie Gibson.

She started with the phrases, “Right, deep breath,” and went on to say, “It feels very strange sitting her without Phil.”

She acknowledged that viewers can be “full of questions,” occurring: “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.”

While she didn’t go on to say Schofield once more by title, she did direct yet one more level in the direction of him, persevering with: “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 wellbeing of everyone.”

Looking forward to a “new chapter” for the present, she mentioned she hoped “we can find strength in each other,” and thanked viewers for his or her assist.

Following her assertion, Gibson reached throughout and gave her a hug, saying: “All we can do now is be the family that we are.”

Willoughby’s return to the present comes after she hit out at her former co-host and accused him of mendacity to her over his affair.

In a press release final week she mentioned: “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 discover out that this was a lie.”

Schofield has given two interviews since leaving ITV – one to the BBC and one to The Sun newspaper. In both, he insisted Willoughby did not know about the affair.

He also said he had messaged his former co-presenter since the fallout from his departure, but said she did not reply.

Schofield’s affair took place while the television star was still married to wife Stephanie Lowe, and before he came out publicly as gay in 2020.

He had denied having a relationship with a colleague when questioned by ITV about rumours in early 2020.

ITV has since announced an exterior assessment of the saga led by a barrister.