Holly Willoughby reportedly ‘saddened’ by Phillip Schofield’s bombshell interview amid This Morning scandal

Phillip Schofield had been the face of ITV’s This Morning for more than 20 years, but following the scandal where the TV presenter lied about an affair with a younger male colleague, he appeared on competing broadcaster BBC to tell his side of the story.

The 61-year-old sat down with Amol Rajan for BBC iPlayer and left the likes of Piers Morgan jumping to his defence as he explained that he was struggling with his mental health amid the backlash.

While Morgan voiced his reaction, people were left wondering whether Phil’s former best friend and co-host Holly Willoughby, who has been on holiday in Portugal for the past week, had seen the interview or reached out since their reported last text exchange in which Phil stated he was ‘so, so, sorry’.

Ahead of Holly appearing on This Morning alongside Josie Gibson, sources have now answered ITV viewers' questions by suggesting that Holly was ‘saddened’ by seeing her former Dancing on Ice co-host in that state.

Sources told The Sun: “Holly has not spoken to Phil, but was saddened to see him like that. Seeing Phil so downtrodden and in a bad way was distressing for a number of people who know him personally.”

In addition to people questioning the state of their friendship since Phillip’s exit from This Morning, similar doubts have been cast as to Holly’s future on the magazine show. 

Holly is due to appear on the couch on Monday morning following her half term break but some are calling for her to leave or for the show to be axed altogether as ITV bosses face questioning from MPs.

If Holly does ‘get the boot’, one could potentially see her appear on BBC screens as allegations suggest the competing broadcaster’s chief content officer Charlotte Moore would like her to jump channels.

Could we see Holly Willoughby on the BBC after Phillip’s bombshell iPlayer interview?