Morninggate - Daily Mail: Could This Morning be AXED? Staff fear for their jobs

Story from Daily Mail:

Staff working on This Morning fear the show could be axed completely following Phillip Schofield's confession that he had an affair with a young colleague and lied about it.

Insiders say there is concern that the embattled daytime show should be 'rested' for some time, or even be revamped with a new name amid fears the show's reputation has been 'tarnished beyond repair'.

The channel's senior bosses are coming under increasing pressure to declare who knew what when about Schofield and his relationship with the production assistant, after it emerged that they held a 2020 investigation into rumours of an affair - when both men denied a relationship.

But a senior lawyer has said there should be a 'probe' into the affair over a possible 'abuse of power' - as it emerges that the young male colleague was just 15 when he first met Schofield.

It comes after Holly Willoughby slammed her former co-host of 13 years and 'bestie', saying it was 'very hurtful' to discover that she had been lied to - as friends say she has 'absolutely no plans to leave This Morning' despite concerns about the show's future.

An abuse lawyer said there should be an independent 'probe' into ITV in the wake of the revelations about the affair, which involved a much younger, more junior, male colleague.

MailOnline is aware of the identity of the colleague but has chosen not to identify him.

Richard Scorer, of Slater and Gordon, said that while all of the details of the 'unwise but not illegal' relationship were not yet known, 'any situation where a young person may have been subjected to a potential imbalance of abuse of power needs to be investigated fully and independently'.

The abuse specialist added that the long-standing rumours about the affair - and the allegations that others in ITV were aware of the relationship - meant it was 'imperative that there is a full and transparent investigation'.

The calls for a probe come as ITV's chief, Carolyn McCall, is said to believe that This Morning's reputation is 'tarnished beyond repair' - leaving presenters and crew scrambling for their jobs.

One source told The Mirror that no one would want to appear on the morning TV staple.

'No one is going to want to appear on it and Carolyn is looking to axe it. Her job could also be on the rocks. Behind the scenes it's being said that it is a nightmare.'

Another said: 'The show is an institution but it has been badly damaged by all of this. Lies have been told and that has undermined everything that the audience tunes in for. There is genuine concern that it could have some time off the airwaves.'

A source told The Sun: 'The future of the show is hanging by a thread and the presenting talent are unsure of their next move - they're deciding whether to leap from a sinking ship.

'The whole This Morning senior team is in complete damage-limitation mode worrying about the presenters who might walk away.

'Phillip no doubt thinks he has tried to do the right thing but the overwhelming feeling on set is that procedures need to be put in place to ensure the same mistakes never happen again.

'Some presenters feel the saga has left too much toxicity around the show, it can't survive and they're considering their future.'

One presenter currently considering her future is Schofield's co-host of 13 years - who he previously described as his 'rock', Holly Willoughby, who issued a thunderous statement on Saturday afternoon.

In a story shared to her 8.3million Instagram followers, Holly Willoughby, believed to be on holiday in the Algarve, said it had 'taken time to process' the bombshell revelations about her ex co-host.

The This Morning presenter added that she had questioned Schofield about the affair herself when the rumours first came to her attention.

'When reports of this relationship first surfaced, I asked Phil directly if this was true and was told it was not.

'It's been very hurtful to now find out that this was a lie.'

The statement creates questions about whether the formerly 'best friends' will ever return to the easy relationship they once shared, after months of reports of turmoil.

But despite the concerns that the show might sink as a result of the revelations, friends of Holly Willoughby told The Mail on Sunday: 'Holly didn't know about this and she is very upset to have learned the truth.

'She has been lied to as well. It has all been very traumatic for her and a time of real sadness.

'Phil was her very close friend, they shared so much time together, had so many laughs and supported one another through difficult times. This is all a shock.'

The source added that Ms Willoughby 'has absolutely no plans to leave This Morning.

'She loves the show and she is looking forward to going back when she is back from her half-term break.

Willoughby is not the only This Morning regular said to be incandescent at the weekend's revelations.

Dermot O'Leary and Alison Hammond - both hotly tipped to be Schofield's replacement - paid an awkward 30-second tribute to the veteran presenter after he stepped back from his role.

A source told The Mirror: 'Both are furious. The telling thing in all of this is the silence where Phil’s colleagues could have stepped in to back him. No one wants to be damaged by association.

'There is a real shock behind the scenes that such a successful show has been so badly hit by the actions of one presenter.

'The thinking last week was that when it returned after the summer, Phil would not be replaced by one person – but that there’d be a rolling rota on the sofa, much like there is on Good Morning Britain. But now those conversations seem irrelevant.'

On Friday evening, friends of the disgraced ITV star said he was planning to step away from public life in the wake of the scandal.

Just three in ten viewers think that Schofield will ever be able to return to screens again, according to a poll in The Sun - and 40 per cent think he'll never appear on TV again.

But 55 per cent said their opinion of him had not been changed by his bombshell statement on Friday, while a quarter said they were 'much more negative' about the presenter now.

This Morning Twitter account was updated during the day on Saturday to remove a picture that featured Schofield.

The cover image was replaced by a blank picture with the show's branding.

An ITV Spokesperson told MailOnline on Saturday: 'As we said on the record earlier today, This Morning is not under review and there's no plans for the show to be axed. This Morning will return on Monday.'

Earlier in the day, they also said: 'Further to our statement last night, ITV can confirm that when rumours of a relationship between Phillip Schofield and an employee of ITV first began to circulate in early 2020 ITV investigated.

'Both parties were questioned and both categorically and repeatedly denied the rumours as did Phillip's then agency YMU.

'In addition, ITV spoke to a number of people who worked on This Morning and were not provided with, and did not find, any evidence of a relationship beyond hearsay and rumour.

'Phillip's statement yesterday reveals that he lied to people at ITV, from senior management to fellow presenters, to YMU, to the media and to others over this relationship.'

They went on to add: 'This Morning is not under review and the show will be back on Monday.'

The broadcaster's chief executive, Carolyn McCall, director of television Kevin Lygo, head of daytime Emma Gormley and This Morning editor Martin Frizell insist that they were also lied to by the presenter.

Ms McCall's communications chief, Paul Moore, was also involved in looking into the situation.

None knew Schofield had quit ITV on Friday evening until they read the statement he issued to the Daily Mail, admitting he had lied over the relationship.

It has now also been claimed that a star of another ITV show formally complained to management about how the junior employee had been treated.

Other staff are furious and worried that they are having to 'deal with the very real fallout of Schofield's mixed-up professional and personal life'.

One said: 'We love [the production assistant] but he's very troubled now. What if he can't cope?'

Another source at the channel said: 'It is pretty difficult to believe that none of the top bosses knew anything. There were rumours flying around ITV for some time.'

Ms Gormley, who oversees This Morning, is understood to have had a close working relationship with Schofield and Mr Lygo was also said to be close to the fallen star.

But last week sources said This Morning editor Mr Frizell had grown 'fed up of clearing up Schofield's mess'.

Meanwhile, Schofield's former colleague Eamonn Holmes – who was left furious when he was sacked from This Morning in November 2021 – took to social media to make a string of allegations, suggesting station bosses knew of claims against Schofield and 'never once took action'.

ITV issued a robust response on Friday insisting that they were lied to by their former golden boy for several years.

A spokeswoman said: 'ITV can confirm that when rumours of a relationship between Phillip Schofield and an employee of ITV first began to circulate in early 2020, ITV investigated.

Both parties were questioned and both categorically and repeatedly denied the rumours as did Phillip's then agency YMU.

'In addition, ITV spoke to a number of people who worked on This Morning and were not provided with, and did not find, any evidence of a relationship beyond hearsay and rumour.

Phillip's statement on Friday reveals that he lied to people at ITV, from senior management to fellow presenters, to YMU, to the media and to others over this relationship.'

Another insider told The Mail on Sunday that some bosses fear the scandal will have an adverse effect on ITV's share price when the stock market opens after the bank holiday on Tuesday.

They said: 'The investor relations team are living on their nerves, they are worried that all of this could have ramifications.'

Financial commentator Susannah Streeter told The Sun that she expected some 'short-term turbulence'.

At close on Friday, the ITV share price was 71.78p. It had fallen by five per cent at the beginning of the month following a tricky first quarter of 2023.

But while many will be laying the blame for ITV's woes, financial and otherwise, at Schofield's door, one senior industry figure told the Observer that they believed it was unfair to lay the scandal at the door of his managers.

'They were simply lied to. I can't see that this reflects on them.'