With rumours of tension between Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield reaching fever pitch, PR expert Nick Ede believes it’s time for a shake-up at This Morning
It’s been a whirlwind few months at This Morning and, last week, even more scandal emerged as it was alleged that Holly Willoughby’s friendship with co-star Phillip Schofield had significantly “cooled” – despite the duo putting on a united front on screen. Phillip then followed the revelation by issuing a shock statement addressing his relationship with Holly. In it he said, “The last few weeks haven’t been easy for either of us”, and went to on to add, “Holly has always been there for me, through thick and thin.”
And he fuelled speculation that he might be set to leave the show by adding, “Whatever happens we still have each other to count on.”
A source says, “To those around them on set, it’s become clear that Holly and Phil are not as close as they once were. Professionally, you would have no idea there was anything going on because, on camera, they are acting exactly the same. But behind the scenes, their relationship has cooled.”
However, the news came as no surprise to fans after months of reports of tension backstage.
In March, Phillip, 61, was a no-show in his morning slot, with news later emerging that his brother, Timothy, had been accused with – and later found guilty of – the sexual assault of a teenager. He faces sentencing later this week.
DRAMATIC
Now PR expert Nick Ede says that he wouldn’t be surprised if there was a dramatic shake-up of the stars on the award-winning daytime TV show very soon.
Nick says, “Holly has been branching out on her own for a while now, and Alison Hammond is hosting the Great British Bake Off – they’re all marching off.
“If Phil were to leave, they have a bank of fantastic presenters to step in. Viewers love the likes of Joel Dommett, Craig Doyle and Marvin Humes, who could match up with Holly. The last few months have shown you don’t need the same presenters day after day.
“There’s an outside chance that there could even be a permanent female duo – Josie Gibson and Alison have proved incredibly popular and the combo of Alison and Holly recently proved very successful.”
A shake-up would be a major blow to the show. While presenters like Alison and Dermot O’Leary, and Josie and Craig, have covered Holly and Phil’s annual holiday, the duo have proved a powerhouse on the sofa in their regular Monday-Thursday slot since 2009.
FRUSTRATED
But with rumours of tension flying – and Holly rolling her eyes at Phil and looking frustrated wh
