Phillip Schofield reported his former TV best friend and co-host Holly Willoughby to ITV chiefs after she refused to publicly back him, insiders have claimed.
Friends of the disgraced presenter say that he felt Holly and a This Morning boss had staged a ‘very well constructed coup’ as the country witnessed his dramatic fall from grace.
Schofield, 62, left This Morning last May following months of speculation about a breakdown in his relationship with Ms Willoughby. He then admitted to having an affair with a junior colleague and left ITV altogether.
The pair used to be best friends, with their families even taking annual holidays together, but the bitter feud appears to have been reignited with Schofield now referring to his once close pal as ‘the witch’.
Schofield is said to have told Ms Willoughby that she ‘brought him down’ before he resigned from This Morning.
Phillip Schofield reported his former TV best friend and co-host Holly Willoughby to ITV chiefs after she refused to publicly back him, insiders have claimed
Schofield, 62, left This Morning last May following months of speculation about a breakdown in his relationship with Ms Willoughby. He then left ITV altogether after admitting to having an affair with a junior colleague
The Daily Mirror reported that Schofield sent the accusation in a WhatsApp message and said she should have publicly supported him following their fall out.
He then blamed her for not doing so, saying it then prompted him to stand down after 21 years on the ITV show.
Schofield, who made a TV comeback last week on Channel 5’s Cast Away, had asked her for a public show of support such as a statement or picture together in the hope it would halt claims they had fallen out.
After he sent the WhatsApp, Ms Willoughby reportedly replied that she was in the dark about what was going on.
But friends of Schofield say he was so upset that he reported Ms Willoughby to two senior ITV bosses. MailOnline has contacted ITV for comment.
A source told The Mirror: ‘Phillip considered her a friend, his TV sister as he called her, and always backed her, even recommending her to do the jungle. Her lack of public support was a low blow in his eyes.’
Schofield and his management were also said to be deeply suspicious of her PR team and were unhappy that they weren’t correcting ‘false narratives running riot’.
Another factor in their fall out was said to be that Ms Willoughby was unaware of the full details of his paedophile brother Timothy’s crimes.
While she and ITV were aware of a forthcoming trial last March, Schofield is understood to have not told her the full extent of it.
One showbusiness insider said: ‘You can see what Phil is doing, he is angry and he is taking his moment in the limelight, slinging more mud while people are interested in him.
‘Phil’s career ended because he lied, he resigned from ITV when he lied about having an affair with a much younger colleague. To say this is Holly’s fault is just ridiculous. Talk about blame the woman.’
Friends of Ms Willoughby point to the fact that she was entirely vindicated for her falling out with Schofield after it emerged that he had lied about his relationship with a younger colleague.
Ms Willoughby said last year he had been dishonest with her about the affair, as he had also been to ITV, his agent YMU and his family. He also lied to the Mail about it and admitted the truth in a statement to us last May.
‘Phil is a self-confessed and proven liar so things he says have to be taken with a pinch of salt,’ a source said: ‘He lied to his colleagues, his employers and the media, let’s not forget that.’
Friends of the disgraced presenter say he sent her the accusation in a WhatsApp message and said she should have publicly supported him following their fall out
Following rumours that they had fallen out last May, Schofield left Ms Willoughby devastated when he made a public statement to discuss their friendship.
He said: ‘The last few weeks haven’t been easy for either of us. As I have said before, Holly is my rock.
‘We’re the best of friends – as always, she is an incredible support on screen, behind the scenes and on the phone.
‘Holly has always been there for me, through thick and thin. And I’ve been there for her.’
Friends of Ms Willoughby said at the time said she was ‘blindsided’ by his outburst.
Schofield stood down from This Morning days later on May 20.
He said in a statement: ‘I understand that ITV has decided the current situation can’t go on, and I want to do what I can to protect the show that I love.
Elsewhere, the identity of Phil’s ‘three s**ts’ have allegedly been revealed as Holly and old ITV bosses Martin Frizell (left) and Emma Gormley (right)
Sources have alleged that Phil now refers to his once close friend Holly as ‘the witch’ and reportedly uses a hatted hag’s emoji when discussing her with friends
‘So I have agreed to step down from This Morning with immediate effect, in the hope that the show can move forward to a bright future.’
While he stepped down from This Morning, he was due to present the Soap Awards a week later for ITV and bosses at the network had given him a new prime time show.
He later quit after admitting an affair with his colleague.
Elsewhere, the identity of Phil’s ‘three s**ts’ have allegedly been revealed as Holly and his former ITV bosses Martin Frizell and Emma Gormley.
During Phil’s comeback show Cast Away, which aired on Channel 5 last week, the TV star took aim at those ‘who betrayed him’ 16 months ago when he quit ITV’s This Morning.
In the programme Schofield appears to blame his dramatic fall from grace on a trio of his former ITV colleagues, saying: ‘I think there are only three s**ts [of showbiz].’
He pointed out that one was a ‘coward who never stepped up in Queuegate,’ while another ‘is a coward because they never stepped up when I was being battered’.
He claimed the third ‘is just brand-orientated’, adding: ‘Not what you expect, not what you think you’re going to get.’
During Phil’s comeback show Cast Away, which aired on Channel 5 last week, the TV star took aim at those ‘who betrayed him’ 16 months ago when he quit ITV’s This Morning
The Sun have now reported that Phil believes Holly and their This Morning boss Martin staged an ‘organised coup’ to get him sacked after the jailing of his paedophile brother Timothy.
Sources have alleged that Phil now refers to his once close friend Holly as ‘the witch’ and reportedly uses a witch emoji when discussing her with friends.
A friend said: ‘Phil believes Holly, Martin and Emma were the reason he was booted from ITV and he thinks they treated him unfairly.
The insiders also claim Phil begged Martin not to send him and Holly to see the Queen’s coffin for their ITV show, which backfired with the infamous ‘queue-gate’ backlash.
Representatives for Holly declined to comment when contacted by MailOnline for comment. ITV have been approached for comment.
It has also been claimed today that Holly allegedly ‘knew’ about Schofield’s paedophile brother in the build-up to his court case.
It is understood Holly ‘supported’ her former colleague prior to the trial, despite reports she was blindsided by his brother Timothy’s crimes.
Phillip’s 54-year-old brother was convicted in April 2023 of 11 sexual offences involving a child between October 2016 and October 2019, including two of sexual activity with a child.
It has also been claimed today that Holly allegedly ‘knew’ about Schofield’s paedophile brother in the build-up to his court case
The Mirror claims Phillip notified Holly a month after Timothy’s arrest in 2021 and Holly was even praised for being ‘really supportive of what he was going through’.
A friend told the publication: ‘There is a narrative – uncorrected by Holly’s team – that she was blindsided by news of his brother’s court case and was furious with him for keeping her in the dark about it.
‘But that narrative couldn’t be further from the truth.’
But when it became ‘bad for her brand’, it is understood Holly quickly turned her back on the former This Morning star when Timothy went on trial in May.
A source told MailOnline Holly is annoyed by these claims and insisted there isn’t a shred of truth in it.
The Sun reported that Holly ‘started to put up a wall between them because she knew it could look bad for her name’.
A friend told the publication: ‘Phil feels that he was sacked because of the bad press around his brother. Everyone knew about Tim – including Holly.
‘They had a backstage make-up room called ‘The Sanctuary’ at This Morning, where Phil first assembled trusted pals including Holly and told them, tearfully, about his brother. Holly held his hand and was super kind.
‘But Phil feels she distanced herself from it publicly because it was bad for her brand. But she supported Phil and was disgusted by what his brother had done.’
Holly’s representatives declined to comment when contacted by MailOnline.
