Norton: Phillip and Holly ought to have seen the furore coming
CHAT show star Graham Norton says Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby ‘did nothing wrong’ – but added that they should have expected a backlash for queue-jumping.
The native of Bandon, West Cork, said the TV pair were wrong to assume there would not be controversy over them going to the front of the hours-long queue to see the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II lying in state this month.
An outraged public launched a petition calling for them to be axed which yesterday reached 73,000 signatures.
Norton said: ‘As far as I’m concerned they did nothing wrong. There was a two-tier system. You could queuejump. I was offered a queuejump ticket. And I didn’t say, “yes” because I thought: “If anybody sees me, I’ll get it in the neck.” I suppose what Phil and Holly got wrong was they thought people wouldn’t care. I guess that’s their crime.
BBC star Norton, 59, continues to pull in audiences with The Graham Norton Show, and his novel, Holding, has been made into a TV drama, filmed in West Cork and starring Brenda Fricker and Conleth Hill.
He also praised West Cork locals for keeping his big summer wedding ‘a secret’.
Norton tied the knot to Scottish filmmaker Jonothan ‘Jono’ McLeod in July. After keeping their relationship under the radar, the couple celebrated with around 120 family and friends in Bantry House.
Speaking on Australian TV’s The Project, Norton said: ‘It was a big party in West Cork, the people were really supportive and kept it all a big secret.
‘But people got excited about who might be there, and at one stage there was a “sighting” in the local supermarket of Adele without makeup.’ Speaking to BBC Radio 4, he admitted that while he is enjoying married life, he never saw himself getting hitched. ‘It’s good so far, it would be awful if it wasn’t at this stage, just a few months in,’ he said. ‘I’d like to think that even I could manage a few months!’
He added: ‘I’m from that generation of gays who assumed it was never going to be on the cards.
‘I mean, I never gave up hope of finding the one. If it was a surprise, it was a pleasant surprise.’