'LOST MY BEST FRIEND'
Phillip Schofield reveals the text he sent Holly Willoughby begging for forgiveness over his lies…and she’s not replied
PHILLIP Schofield has revealed the text he sent Holly Willoughby begging for forgiveness - but she hasn't replied.
Emotional Schofield told The Sun he's lost his "best friend" after lying to his This Morning co-star Holly about his secret relationship with a much-younger male employee.
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In an interview with The Sun, he says the pair have broken all contact — and reveals it was his paedophile brother’s imprisonment that made her distance herself from the friendship.
He says: “I’ve lost my best friend. I let her down (Holly). I let that entire show down. I let the viewers down.
“Holly did not know (about the romance). And she was one of the first texts that I sent, to say, ‘I am so, so sorry that I lied to you’.
“She didn’t reply and I understand why she didn’t reply, as well. So yeah. If anyone is in any way linking Holly to this; that is absolutely, wholly untrue.
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“I had no feud with Holly. She is my TV sister. But quite rightly, when I am in the middle of a s**t show with bad press over something where I have done nothing wrong — in fact, I did everything right — it’s a witch hunt. And that strips that (friendship) away.
“Quite rightly, she is going to take a step back and think, ‘I have to step back from this’, and I understand that completely.
“As we see now, this is a vicious game and the last thing you want is for something to stick on you.
“It was becoming bigger than the people we had on the show. I understand that.”
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Speaking to the BBC, he added: "I know you can't reply, you're probably not allowed, but please know I'm desperately sorry."
Holly shared an emotional statement when Phillip announced his departure from the show.
She penned: "Hi everyone, it's been over 13 great years presenting This Morning with Phil and I want to take this opportunity to thank him for all of his knowledge, his experience and his humour.
"The sofa won't feel the same without him," followed by a love heart.
Yesterday, it emerged that ITV boss Carolyn McCall has been called to face MPs amid the ongoing This Morning furore.
She has been called to give evidence to a parliamentary committee to answer questions about the broadcaster’s approach to safeguarding and complaint-handling following Phillip’s resignation.
The chief executive will face questions from MPs on the This Morning row at the Culture, Media and Sport committee on June 14.
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