Miriam Margolyes has slammed the public’s reaction to the Phillip Schofield affair scandal in a new interview.
Phillip, 61, confirmed in May he had been having an affair with a younger male colleague. The former This Morning presenter added that the extra-marital relationship was over, describing it at the time as “unwise” but “not illegal”.
Married to wife Stephanie since 1993, Phillip previously came out as gay on air to viewers in February 2020.
Miriam Margolyes on Phillip Schofield
Harry Potter star Miriam, 82, made several appearances on the This Morning sofa to be interviewed by Phillip and fellow ex co-host Holly Willoughby.
Back in September when she appeared on the ITV daytime series, she appeared to allude to the fallout from Phillip’s departure.
Having offered advice to a viewer about building self-confidence, she told Holly and stand-in presenter Josie Gibson at the time: “You know when people were at you, it must have been ghastly.”
Miriam has also noted in her memoir Oh Miriam: Stories From An Extraordinary Life she felt Phil and Holly were “warm, welcoming and ready to join in the frolic”. She added: “I feel sad I shan’t have the chance to make Phil laugh again; he was a darling then and to me he always will be.”
Phillip Schofield news
Now, speaking to MailOnline, Miriam blamed the response to the scandal with Phillip on ‘cancel culture’.
She said she believed the public’s reaction was “too quick, too venomous, too damaging”.
I think cancel culture is rubbish.
The Doctor Who star went on: “I think cancel culture is rubbish. People will probably want to cancel me, but they haven’t so far.”
During the same chat, Miriam added: “I love being gay, though I don’t do it much now.”
She reflected on her relationship with Heather Sutherland, an academic based in Amsterdam, and her long-time partner: “Two lesbians together for 54 years is not to be sniffed at. I found the perfect person. She is better than I am in every way – as a human being, as a lesbian, as a writer, as a thinker.”
Phillip Schofield’s reps declined to comment when approached by ED!.
Read more: Miriam Margolyes once turned down I’m A Celebrity offer: ‘I’ve got class, love’
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