Inside BBC's plot to poach Holly Willoughby as 'desperate' bosses chase her
Holly Willoughby is reportedly the focus of a BBC plot to poach her from ITV following the fallout from the controversy surrounding This Morning and Phillip Schofield.
The 42-year-old star has been keeping a low profile since Phil announced he was leaving the ITV daytime show with immediate effect and later confessed to having an affair with a young production assistant who worked on This Morning.
Rumours of the relationship began to circulate in 2020, and ITV launched an investigation into the allegations, with Phil denying the claims.
Last month, the 61-year-old admitted he had lied to ITV bosses, his family and friends over the affair, and Holly issued a simple statement on social media that revealed her devastation over her former co-host’s bombshell confession.
Holly is in demand following the This Morning scandal (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
The beloved presenters were daytime TV icons (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)“It's taken time to process yesterday's news. When reports of this relationship first surfaced, I asked Phil directly if this was true and was told it was not.
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“It's been very hurtful to now find out that this was a lie,” she wrote.
Now, the mum-of-three is in demand, and Mirror Online can exclusively reveal Holly could put the beleaguered ITV daytime show behind her for a primetime presenting spot at the BBC.
Holly previously hosted Freeze the Fear on BBC1 last year, and she maintained a good relationship with BBC bosses.
Holly impressed BBC bosses hosting Freeze the Fear last year (BBC)“Ever since then they have been keen to sign her up for another project and have bent over backwards to offer her other opportunities,” a source told us, stating that the ongoing drama at ITV has “played into their hands”.
“The bosses have had conversations this week about what they could offer her going forward. And one executive reached out to her directly earlier in the week,” they added.
Holly is yet to make a decision, but she “really values her relationship with the BBC and the friendships she has built up there.”
The mum-of-three is hoping to put the scandal behind her (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)The TV star and her husband Dan Baldwin are good friends with the BBC’s Head of Entertainment Kalpna Patel-Knight, and it’s understood they have had “multiple conversations” since working together on Freeze the Fear.
“Kalpna, Dan and Holly have been very, very tight since they worked on Freeze the Fear together. They are talking to each other regularly,” the source explained.
Kalpna also offered Holly the chance to host the BBC show Survivor, but she was unable to make it work due to her strict filming schedule on This Morning.
“Ever since then, Kalpna has been keen to find another format for her and the recent developments at ITV may well open the door for that,” they added.
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“If somehow This Morning does survive, losing Holly would be an absolute hammer blow.”
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