ITV to hold out exterior overview of the info following Phillip Schofield’s exit
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TV has instructed a barrister to hold out an exterior overview of the info following Phillip Schofield’s departure from This Morning and subsequent press statements, chief government Dame Carolyn McCall has stated in a letter seen by the PA news company.
The letter was despatched to tradition secretary Lucy Frazer, DCMS Committee chair Dame Caroline Dinenage and Ofcom’s chief government Dame Melanie Dawes, within the wake of Schofield’s departure from ITV final week.
Schofield, 61, resigned from the broadcaster on Friday and was dropped by his expertise company YMU after admitting to an “unwise but not illegal” affair with a youthful male colleague.
The letter mentions the “significant media coverage concerning Phillip Schofield” and provides that: “As you would expect we take the matter extremely seriously and have reviewed our own records over the weekend.”
It says that ITV data present that “when rumours of a relationship between Phillip Schofield and an employee of ITV first began to circulate in late 2019/early 2020 ITV investigated.”
“Both parties were questioned then and both categorically and repeatedly denied the rumours, as did Phillip’s then agency YMU. In addition, ITV spoke to a number of people who worked on the This Morning and wider Daytime team and were not provided with, and did not find any evidence of a relationship beyond hearsay and rumour.
“Given the ongoing rumours, we continued to ask questions of both parties, who both continued to deny the rumours, including as recently as this month.”
The letter goes on to state out info, following what Dame Carolyn says has been “a lot of inaccuracy” in reporting and she or he added the previous worker Schofield admitted to an affair with has been provided help all through.
It stated: “The ITV employee was aged 19 when he first did work experience at This Morning in 2015 and 20 years old when he applied and succeeded in securing a job as a runner on the show.
“He subsequently applied for and was successful in securing a promotion to Loose Women in 2019. He left ITV in 2021. As you would imagine given the social media scrutiny of him, we have offered him our support throughout this period and indeed are still doing so.
“The employee has made it clear that he does not wish to be named or identified in connection with this matter. We would be grateful if you would be mindful of this.”
The letter states that ITV has instructed Jane Mulcahy KC, of Blackstone Chambers, to “carry out an external review to establish the facts.”
“She will review our records and talk to people involved. This work will also consider our relevant processes and policies and whether we need to change or strengthen any,” the letter stated.
Schofield’s relationship befell whereas the TV star was nonetheless married to spouse Stephanie Lowe and earlier than he got here out publicly as homosexual.
In an announcement on Friday final week he stated he was “deeply sorry” for “having lied to them (the Daily Mail), and to many others about a relationship that I had with someone working on This Morning. I did have a consensual on-off relationship with a younger male colleague at This Morning.”
He stated: “Contrary to speculation, whilst I met the man when he was a teenager and was asked to help him to get into television, it was only after he started to work on the show that it became more than just a friendship.
“That relationship was unwise, but not illegal. It is now over.”
His assertion added: “I am painfully conscious that I have lied to my employers at ITV, to my colleagues and friends, to my agents, to the media and therefore the public, and most importantly of all to my family.
“I am so very, very sorry, as I am for having been unfaithful to my wife.”
Schofield had introduced This Morning since 2002, with Willoughby becoming a member of the programme in 2009.
The pair’s pleasant relationship and casual nature on the programme resulted in viral segments and trade recognition, together with a number of National Television Awards.