ITV has quite the PR nightmare on its hands this week with the This Morning fall-out raging.
Late last night, Phillip Schofield released a statement addressing his alleged rift with Holly Willoughby. She’s yet to break her silence but reports speculate that she was “blindsided” by his comments.
The unprecedented statement came after reports speculated that Holly and Phil’s friendship was on the slide and that she had reportedly decided to stay on and front the show should Phil leave – a U-turn on comments Holly had made previously.
ITV needs to stamp out the toxic speculation about This Morning
The pair have undoubtedly had a tough time of late. Phil‘s brother was up in court on a sex assault charge. Speculation suggests he didn’t tell Holly he was taking time out. Holly had shingles. They “skipped the queue” to see the Queen lying in state. He supposedly had a row with Ruth Langsford. She reportedly made complaints about him. There were claims of a “toxic” atmosphere backstage at This Morning.
I could go on and on and on and on and on. That old saying goes there’s no smoke without fire, but all this speculation by “insiders” is ruining the show for its die-hard fans. If you ask me, Holly and Phil need to think of the show and do one of two things.
Either give the viewers a full heart-to-heart on live telly, just like they did when he came out. Address the speculation instead of brushing it under the carpet. Heck, they might even clear a few things up and stop the gossips. But if they’re not going to do that, they should do the right thing and save the show by stepping away from it.
Stop dragging the show down
This Morning works whether or not Holly and Phil are at the helm. It’s a huge brand and the fans love the show. But all this hoopla surrounding its two main presenters is just dragging it down.
No matter what’s happening in our home lives we’re told it’s best not to bring those dramas into work. But there’s simply no avoiding it now. I think the only way to stop the gossip and stamp out the toxicity is to have it out on live TV.
The pair clearly have a lot of love for each other. They’ve worked together for almost 15 years, have holidayed together, got drunk together, celebrated lots of highs and lows together. But all good things come to an end. They don’t, however, have to bring This Morning down with them.
Read more: Inside Phillip Schofield’s celebrity feuds
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