Holly Willoughby 'barely speaking to Phillip Schofield' as friendship 'cools'
Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield are said to barely be speaking off camera as they host This Morning.
It has been claimed the close pals' friendship has "cooled" whilst working on the ITV show.
The much-loved presenting duo have hosted the daytime programme together for 14 years, but reports suggest their relationship has come under strain recently.
Holly, 42, is said to have distanced herself from Phil, 61, when they are off camera.
A source said: “Holly adores This Morning and for the first time in 14 years she has made it clear that should Phil ever leave she would want to stay. They are separate entities.
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The presenters have been friends for years (mirror.co.uk)“To those around them on set, it has become clear recently that Holly and Phil are not as close as they once were,“ a source told The Sun.
“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."
The insider has claimed there used to be off-screen banter between the pair, but it has since “dwindled“.
The Mirror approached Holly and Phil for comment.
Holly first appeared on the ITV show back in 2009 as she replaced Fern Britton.
She has hosted alongside Phil since then as well as on Dancing On Ice, which started three years earlier.
The pair developed a close friendship, which became apparent on screen.
Back in 2020, Phil said Holly became his “rock“ as he came out as gay live on the show with Holly by his side.
A source exclusively told the Mirror in 2020: "Holly loves his wife Steph and knows the two of them had been having some really difficult conversations. She was there for them both during this time and would, of course, never betray their confidence.
“This is very much Phil’s story, but it’s been a big weight on Holly’s shoulders too.
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"But she’s just delighted it’s finally out of the open. Phil considers Holly a rock throughout all of this.”
In his book Life's What You Make It, Phillip spoken openly about how Holly supported him in the lead up to the TV interview.
Holly supported Phil when he came out as gay on the ITV show (S Meddle/ITV/REX)“We were closer than we’d ever been," he penned. “Holly knew my truth and was helping me to hold everything together.”
But in recent years the two presenters have come under scrutiny and were embroiled in a huge scandal when they were falsely accused of skipping the queue for the Queen's lying in state last year.
ITV fiercely defended the pair against the false claims in a statement, which read: “Hello everyone, we would like to clarify something. We asked Phillip and Holly to be part of a film for this Tuesday’s programme.
“They did not jump the queue, have VIP access or file past the Queen lying in state – but instead were there in a professional capacity as part of the world’s media to report on the event.”
Holly and Phil fell out of favour with some viewers when they were accused of skipping the queue to see the Queen lying in statePhillip has also been faced with his own issues this year as his brother Timothy Schofield was found guilty of sexually abusing a boy.
During the trial Phillip took a break from hosting This Morning as Holly fronted the show alongside Alison Hammond and Joel Dommett.
After the trial in April, Phillip released a statement, where he said: “My overwhelming concern is and has always been for the wellbeing of the victim and his family. I hope that their privacy will now be respected.
“If any crime had ever been confessed to me by my brother, I would have acted immediately to protect the victim and their family.
“These are despicable crimes, and I welcome the guilty verdicts.
“As far as I am concerned, I no longer have a brother.”
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