Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary pay tribute to This Morning’s Phillip Schofield
Piers Morgan has weighed in on the This Morning scandal, comparing it to Quentin Tarantino’s 1992 crime film Reservoir Dogs.
“I fear we’re now entering the Reservoir Dogs phase of the This Morning scandal… and it could end up with a lot of corpsed careers,” the broadcaster wrote on Twitter.
Furthermore, Phillip Schofield’s confession that he had an affair with a younger colleague on This Morning has sparked calls for an independent inquiry.
The 61-year-old, who admitted last week that he lied to his employers, as well as to co-star Holly Willoughby, his agent, and his family about the nature of his relationship with his colleague, has resigned from ITV altogether.
In his statement to the Daily Mail shared on Friday, Schofield explained that he had an “unwise” but “not illegal” consensual on-off relationship with someone working on This Morning.
Former culture secretary Nadine Dorries told the BBC on Sunday that questions still remained about what safeguarding had been in place and how Schofield’s colleague came to be employed on the daytime TV show.
The employee in question was allegedly 15 when he first met Schofield during a school visit, the Mail on Sunday reports. Lawyers representing Schofield confirmed to the Evening Standard that he met the boy when he was 15, but said the affair began after he started working at ITV, after he turned 18.
On Monday (29 May), Schofield shared an Instagram post hitting back at the “handful of people with a grudge against me or the show”, which he said was the “best show to work on”.
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Piers Morgan weighs in on the ‘This Morning’ scandal
Piers Morgan has compared the This Morning scandal to Quentin Tarantino’s 1992 crime film Reservoir Dogs.
“I fear we’re now entering the Reservoir Dogs phase of the This Morning scandal… and it could end up with a lot of corpsed careers,” he wrote on Twitter.
The broadcaster also shared a message calling for “a lot more questions” to be asked on the channel.
Morgan’s views come as Phillip Schofield shared a statement on Instagram to hit out at “loud voices” who have criticised him and This Morning for its “toxicity”.
Peony Hirwani30 May 2023 04:36
Ed Balls has said people in power who work with young people must take ‘extra responsibility’
Speaking on Monday’s episode (29 May) of Good Morning Britain, Ed Balls said: “There are certain professions, politics is one, television the same, where very powerful people work with young people all the time in a very intensive way. But that means an extra responsibility.”
Ed added: “And our society’s changed, even compared to when I was in politics. Now politics is dealing with scandals and the abuse of power in the workplace which were never even talked about [before].”
According to the latest report by The Mail on Sunday, Schofield’s former colleague was allegedly just 15 when they met at a talk the TV presenter was giving at a theatre school, while Schofield was in his late forties. Lawyers representing Schofield confirmed to the Evening Standard that he met the boy when he was 15, but said the affair began after he started working at ITV, after he turned 18.
Former Labour minister Ed Balls
(ITV / Good Morning Britain)
Inga Parkel30 May 2023 05:00
Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary will be hosting This Morning all week
Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary will be hosting This Morning all week for half term, ITV has confirmed.
Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary
(ITV)
Holly Willoughby is due to return to the ITV programme on 5 June.
Inga Parkel30 May 2023 04:00
This Morning viewers spot Dermot O’Leary’s subtle reference to Phillip Schofield scandal
Earlier this morning, viewers spotted what they believed was a subtle nod to the Phillip Schofield scandal from Dermot O’Leary.
O’Leary and Alison Hammond fronted the talk show in Holly Willoughby’s absence.
(ITV)
O’Leary and Alison Hammond are hosting the ITV show after Schofield admitted to ‘unwise’ affair with much younger colleague
Inga Parkel30 May 2023 03:00
The celebrities who weighed in on Phillip Schofield’s This Morning and ITV exit
From Piers Morgan to Eamonn Holmes, these are all the stars that have chimed in on the ongoing drama.
(Getty)
Presenter left the ITV show last week, and has since split from the broadcaster altogether
Inga Parkel30 May 2023 02:00
Piers Morgan empathises with Phillip Schofield
Before Phillip Schofield completely resigned from ITV after confessing he had an affair with a much younger staffer, Piers Morgan said Schofield was “heartbroken” after leaving This Morning.
In a scathing op-ed for The Sun, Morgan empathised with the disgraced broadcaster, saying that “Phillip’s not the evil monster he’s being painted as, nor is he the angel his previously halo-clad reputation suggested”.
Piers Morgan and Phillip Schofield
(Getty Images)
Morgan expressed empathy for former This Morning presenter in scathing column
Inga Parkel30 May 2023 01:40
Author Lady Colin Campbell ‘celebrates the misfortunes of Phillip Schofield’
Author Lady Colin Campbell has admitted she’s “celebrating the demise of Phillip Schofield”.
In a video recording posted a few days ago, Campbell called Schofield’s resignation a “day of jubilation”.
She went on to call the disgraced TV presenter a “horrid human being”, a “hypocrite”, and a “phoney”.
Inga Parkel30 May 2023 01:20
Dermot O’Leary and Alison Hammond reference claims of ‘toxicity’
Dermot O’Leary and Alison Hammon stepped in to host Monday morning’s (29 May) episode of This Morning.
During the show, the duo appeared to reference claims of “toxicity” at the talk show, stating: “We all know we happen to be in the news at the moment and of course we appreciate that but just from both of us, the whole team here, the crew, the guys downstairs, we love making this show for all of you.”
Hammond added: “We really do and that’s exactly what we are going to do, we are going to continue to do that.”
Gyles Brandreth, who is in the studio to review the news stories of the day, said: “We are very happy to be here, can I say that as well?
“This is a happy place to work, I enjoy coming in here and have done since I began coming in. We are happy people in a happy place.”
Inga Parkel30 May 2023 01:00
ITV confirms it investigated Schofield in 2020
ITV has said it investigated “rumours of a relationship” between Phillip Schofield and a This Morning employee in 2020.
However, the channel said that both parties “repeatedly denied” the claims.
A spokesperson for ITV said on Saturday that the broadcaster was “not provided with, and did not find, any evidence of a relationship beyond hearsay and rumour” when it looked into the matter in 2020.
Inga Parkel30 May 2023 00:40
Nadine Dorries calls for probe into Phillip Schofield affair scandal
Inga Parkel30 May 2023 00:20