With a hop and a skip (and an awkward kiss for Phil) Holly’s off — to meet up with the King
But now even MPs talk about presenters’ rift
THERE has been much fevered speculation about holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield parting company.
And yesterday it happened, but it wasn’t – it seems – a final farewell.
After they shared an awkward kiss, she skipped out of the TV studio and headed off to Buckingham Palace.
Schofield, 61, was left to continue hosting the ITV show alone after Ms Willoughby, 42, departed to introduce the Prince’s Trust Award winners to King Charles. Few will believe their display of closeness heralds a thawing in relations.
The rift between the two presenters – described by an insider as being like a ‘runaway train that cannot be stopped’ – has alarmed bosses. Schofield has resisted calls to quit This Morning despite his popularity with viewers being in freefall.
The row even surfaced in the Commons yesterday when Oliver Dowden, standing in for Rishi Sunak at Prime Minister’s Questions, called Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and his deputy Angela Rayner ‘the Phil and holly of British politics’. explaining his jibe, the deputy prime minister said: ‘All lovey dovey on the surface, they turn it on for the cameras, but as soon as they’re off, it’s a different story. They’re at each other’s throats.’
One ITV insider described it as a ‘cheap shot’ but the embarrassing episode prompted yet another crisis meeting at the broadcaster, with a source saying: ‘enough is enough.’
They added: ‘You know things have got really serious when they’re mentioned in the Commons. This is no longer just a bit of beef on Twitter. Those upstairs know they have to act – they just don’t know what to do.’
On Tuesday ITV bosses were ‘beside themselves’ on learning that the audience had dropped an unprecedented almost 20 per cent from 894,000 last week to 724,000 for Monday’s episode. But a source told the Mail: ‘Phil doesn’t see why he should go. It’s his job – he has steered the show for more than 20 years.’
This Morning fans were left cringing after Ms Willoughby kissed Schofield yesterday, with one tweeting: ‘I just saw Phil and holly hug and kiss like besties. Full of s***.’ Another added: ‘This is painful to watch.’
Ms Willoughby told viewers she had put on her ‘posh dress’ for her visit to Buckingham Palace and when Schofield said he was ‘holding the fort’, she replied: ‘Thank you.’
Before she skipped off, she told her co-host: ‘Don’t be naughty… and save me a piece of cake.’
At the palace, she met the King along with other celebrities including fellow presenter Fearne Cotton and actor Stanley Tucci.
Ms Willoughby told the King the award ceremony had been her first, before he asked her about her job.
‘I do other bits and bobs but mainly This Morning,’ she said. ‘And then I have to be a mum.’ She told him she had three children.