Phillip Schofield defends This Morning amid affair furore and ‘toxicity’ claims
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hillip Schofield has defended This Morning because it got here underneath hearth with claims of “toxicity” amid furore over his affair with a youthful colleague.
However, shortly after the embattled TV star accused a “handful of people with a grudge against me or the show” of constructing accusations, former presenter This Morning Eamonn Holmes blasted Schofield as a “liar”, including: “Pip if u r looking for a fight, u have picked on the wrong person!”
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 younger male colleague on This Morning.
It got here after weeks of hypothesis over a feud with former co-host Holly Willoughby.
Former This Morning resident physician Dr Ranj Singh has hit out on the present’s “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.
Holmes has additionally made allegations in regards to the tradition at ITV, saying Schofield was not “the only guilty party”.
In an announcement on his Instagram story posted shortly earlier than This Morning went on air with Dermot O’Leary and Alison Hammond internet hosting on Monday, Schofield stated: “Now I no longer work on @thismorning I am free to say this.
“I hope you have noticed that it’s the same handful of people with a grudge against me or the show who seem to have the loudest voice.
“This Morning is the best show to work on, with the best people.
“In all the years I worked there there was no toxicity.
“You can listen to those persistently loud voices if you like.
“But the thousands of guests over the years, thousands of staff and crew, hundreds of presenters and contributors all know, it is a family of wonderful, talented, kind, hard working people.”
Shortly afterwards, Holmes, who beforehand offered the present on Fridays with spouse Ruth Langsford, tweeted: “Schofield has just put out a delusional statement.
“Like Holly he puts it on Insta Stories so if it goes wrong there is no record after 24 hrs.
“I’m reluctant to give the liar any more publicity but believe me Pip if u r looking for a fight , u have picked on the wrong person!”
Holmes, who now presents a breakfast present on GB News, has been vocal in his criticism of Schofield, saying he and Langsford had been “deceived and lied to”.
Dianne Nelmes, who was among the many crew that launched This Morning, stated “it’s time” the ITV programme “in a very dignified way, just moved off and gave way to another new show”.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s PM programme, the tv producer additionally stated the present has “felt tired” for a very long time and the “tumultuous run of events around Phillip have formed a lightning rod”.
Ms Nelmes stated that if she was in cost, she would hold it going till July then deliver it again in September with a brand new presenting crew as the present on-screen expertise “attract the wrong kind of tabloid interest”.
In an announcement on Sunday, Dr Ranj stated the “issues” at This Morning go “far beyond” the host.
He stated: “I was on the show for 10 years and I genuinely loved and valued working there.
“However, over time, I grew increasingly worried about how things were behind-the-scenes and how people, including myself, were being treated.
“I didn’t know the truth about what was going on with Phillip, but I do know the issues with TM (This Morning) go far beyond him.
“It takes more than one person to create a culture.”
Dr Ranj stated he raised his considerations with senior executives at ITV as he had been closely concerned in “diversity, anti-bullying and mental health projects” throughout the channel.
“I then found myself being used less and less,” he continued.
“I even took my concerns directly to the top of ITV: the culture at This Morning had become toxic, no longer aligned with ITV values, and I felt like because I whistle-blew I was managed out.
“But as history and experience have taught us, things like bullying and discrimination are very hard to prove, particularly in hindsight and when the ‘people in power’ control the narrative.
“As we’ve seen, no review or investigation is foolproof.”
The physician stated he was assured that issues can be addressed and modifications made however he has not labored on the present since, including it “still hurts” two years on from lodging complaints.
An ITV spokesperson stated: “We are sorry to read Dr Ranj’s post today.
“At ITV we are fully committed to providing every opportunity for anyone who works with us to raise any concern or comments they may have.
“Following a complaint made by Dr Ranj, we appointed an external and independent advisor to carry out a review.
“This external review found no evidence of bullying or discrimination.”
According to The Mail On Sunday, Schofield first met the youthful ITV colleague whom he later had an affair with when he was aged 15.
Lawyers representing Schofield have confirmed they met when the boy was 15, however stated the affair started after he began working at ITV, and the person’s attorneys have additionally stated that it began after he joined the broadcaster.
In an announcement on Friday, Schofield stated it was when the youthful man joined the present as an grownup that their affair started.
ITV stated it investigated “rumours of a relationship” between Schofield and the ITV worker about three years in the past however each events “categorically and repeatedly denied” it.
A spokesperson for the broadcaster stated on Saturday that ITV was “not provided with, and did not find, any evidence of a relationship beyond hearsay and rumour” when it seemed into the matter in 2020.