Eamonn Holmes trades blows on social media with ‘delusional liar’ Phillip Schofield
Eamonn Holmes has described Phillip Schofield as “delusional” and said he has “picked the wrong person… if you’re looking for a fight”.
It comes hours after Schofield, 61, released a statement attacking his critics as “a handful of people with a grudge against me”.
Holmes, 63, who used to cover him on This Morning, called him a “liar” and said he is “reluctant to give the liar any more publicity”.
“But believe me Pip if u r looking for a fight , u have picked on the wrong person,” he wrote.
The feud emerged after Schofield quit the flagship ITV morning show on 20 May – six days before admitting an “unwise but not illegal” affair with a much younger production assistant on the programme.
ITV has been forced to answer questions about how much they knew about the relationship and accusations of a “toxic” culture. Bosses have confirmed they investigated rumours in 2020 but both parties denied it.
‘We happen to be in the news at the moment’
Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary, who have presented This Morning since Schofield stepped down, made brief reference to the controversy on Monday morning’s edition.
“We happen to be in the news at the moment, and of course we appreciate that,” O’Leary said ahead of their newspaper review. “But just from both of us and the whole team here, the crew, the guys downstairs, we love making this show for all of you.”
Hammond added: “We really do. And that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”
Gyles Brandreth, who was reviewing the papers, also offered his support, saying: “This is a happy place to work. I enjoy coming here.”
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Short statement from This Morning
‘Toxic culture’ goes ‘far beyond’ Schofield
It comes after former This Morning doctor Ranj Singh, released a statement about the “toxic culture” at the show, claiming the “issues” with it “go far beyond him [Schofield]”.
He said he “took my concerns directly to the top of ITV”, but nothing came of it.
“There are some good people in TV, but we need to be brave and stand up to those who aren’t. Even if it’s scary as hell, we have to do the right thing otherwise nothing will change,” he wrote.
Read more:
A timeline of the This Morning controversy
ITV responds to rumours around show’s future
Why Schofield’s admission could kill off his career
ITV said it was “saddened” to hear Dr Ranj’s comments, but that his complaint was investigated and “no evidence of bullying or discrimination” was found.
Schofield’s former colleague, Eamonn Holmes, had previously said Schofield had “finally been caught out”.
“He’s not the only guilty party. 4 high members of ITV management knew what sort of man he was,” he said on Twitter.
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Dermot O’Leary on Schofield affair
Schofield originally said he was stepping down from This Morning because it had “become the story” following reports of a feud between him and co-host Holly Willoughby.
That came after his brother was recently jailed for 12 years over child sex offences.
Willoughby, 41, is due to return next Monday (5 June), having gone on an early half-term holiday on 22 May.
She has said that “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 this was a lie,” an Instagram statement added.
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‘No mistakes’ were made – ITV boss
Schofield has now completely resigned from ITV and been dropped by his agents.
His statement to the Daily Mail also admitted lying about the affair to his wife, to ITV, his agents and the media.
The controversy has raised doubts about both Willoughby’s and the show’s future, but ITV has denied reports it could be axed.
Gyles Brandreth says he blames himself for the death of Rod Hull, who died in 1999 when he fell from the roof of his home while attempting to adjust his television aerial.
The 63-year-old entertainer was pronounced dead on arrival at hospital with a coroner later recording a verdict of accidental death.
Hull and Emu were popular in the 1970s and 1980s. Pic: Rex Features
Speaking to John Cleese on the latest episode of his Rosebud podcast, Brandreth said: “I killed a man – it was Rod Hull, the emu man.”
The 76-year-old former GMB presenter went on to explain he had been at the theatre with Hull on the day of his death, a day he said was blighted by “terrible, terrible weather”.
Brandreth went on: “He was sitting next to me, and he was complaining all through the show – he was interrupting the show almost – going on about how he wanted to get home because he wanted to watch the football, but his Sky aerial wasn’t transmitting properly.
“And I said, ‘Don’t moan about it, if you want to watch the television get a ladder out, climb on to the roof, and fix it Rod’.”
He went on to describe Hull’s accident, saying: “And after the show, in this stormy weather, he went home, he got out a ladder, he climbed the ladder, and he tried to fix the aerial.
“Unfortunately, the wind was very great, and he fell backwards off the ladder and killed himself.”
Brandreth said that while he wasn’t present at the time of the accident, he felt he’d “encouraged” him to climb on the roof.
Hull and Emu on Michael Parkinson in 1976
Brandreth also explained how Hull had surprised those who attended his funeral with a pre-planned skit featuring his famous puppet.
‘That bloody bird’
Brandreth said: “It was a great funeral though because at his funeral the coffin came in, and as the coffin was being carried in, it was a sort of [knock, knock, knock].
“He’d arranged a beak sound to be inside the coffin as though the emu was also in the coffin.”
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Hull and Emu first found fame on an Australian children’s TV show, before returning to the UK to establish their act.
Emu famously attacked talk show host Michael Parkinson in 1976, with only a threat from Billy Connolly keeping the puppet under control for the rest of the show. With the moment becoming one of Parkinson’s most memorable moments, he would later refer to the itinerant puppet as “that bloody bird!”.
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Gavin & Stacey to return for ‘last ever episode’
Their popularity peaked in the late 1970s and 1980s, getting their own shows first on the BBC, then ITV, and a later animated follow-up – Rod ‘n’ Emu – on CITV in 1991.
Brandreth, who was previously a Conservative MP for the City of Chester, also said he “killed Harry Secombe”, describing how he had just completed a phone interview with the Welsh actor when he “fell and slipped backwards down the stairs, and a few days later he died”.
Secombe, who was a member of the radio comedy troop The Goon Show, died in 2001 aged 79.
Entertainment
Britney Spears says paramedics turned up ‘illegally’ after twisting her ankle at Chateau Marmont
Britney Spears has downplayed concerns about her health, after paramedics were called to the Chateau Marmont, a boutique hotel in LA.
The 42-year-old singer shared several posts on social media, addressing the incident in the early hours of Thursday morning at the luxury venue on Sunset Boulevard.
Photographs taken by paparazzi appeared to show Spears wearing pyjama shorts outside the hotel, while wrapped in a blanket and clutching a pillow.
In a lengthy Instagram post, Spears wrote: “Just to let people know… the news is fake!!!,” adding, “I am getting stronger every day!!!”
She went on to detail an injury she had suffered that night, writing: “I also twisted my ankle last night and paramedics showed up at my door illegally. They never came in my room but I felt completely harassed. I’m moving to Boston.”
In a later post, she shared a short video showing her swollen ankle, saying: “I really twisted my ankle last night… It’s so bad… F****** idiot here tries to do a leap here in the living room at the Chateau and I fell, embarrassed myself, and that’s it.
“Paramedics came to my door, illegally, and of course caused this scene, which was so unnecessary, when all it needed was ice. But yeah, it is actually pretty bad.”
Spears is now “safe and at home”, two sources close to Spears told NBC News.
A spokesman for the Los Angeles Fire Department did not identify Spears as the subject of a 911 call at the Chateau Marmont but confirmed paramedics were dispatched to the hotel Thursday morning after a report that an adult female had been injured.
The call was received at 12.42am according to the spokesman, Brian Humphrey.
Humphrey said it was unclear if paramedics encountered the person who had reportedly been injured or offered medical help.
No law enforcement was summoned to the address and paramedics left at 1.17am, Humphrey said.
He said the LAFD has no immediate comment on the claims Spears made in her social media post.
Spears with ex-husband Sam Asghari. Pic: AP
The incident comes in the week Spears’s divorce from Sam Asghari was finalised. The former couple – who were married for just 14 months – recently filed paperwork, indicating they had reached a divorce settlement.
Meanwhile, it was announced last week that Spears had also reached a settlement with her father about her controversial 13-year conservatorship which ended in late 2021.
Late last year, Spears released a tell-all memoir – The Woman In Me – giving insight into her stage career, her relationship with Justin Timberlake, friendships with stars including Madonna and Paris Hilton, and her breakdown in 2007.
Sky News has contacted Britney Spears’s representatives for comment.
Entertainment
Gavin & Stacey to return for ‘last ever episode’ on Christmas Day, James Corden announces
Hit sitcom Gavin & Stacey will return for its “last ever episode” on Christmas Day, James Corden has announced.
Corden posted a picture on his Instagram of himself and co-creator Ruth Jones holding a script.
The text on its cover reads: “Gavin & Stacey: the finale. Written by James Corden and Ruth Jones 2024.”
In the caption, Corden added: “Some news…It’s official!”
“We have finished writing the last ever episode of Gavin & Stacey. See you on Christmas Day, BBC One. Love Ruth and James.”
The series, which is primarily filmed in South Wales, first aired in 2007 and lasted for three series, before returning for a special in 2019.
James Corden and Ruth Jones. Pic: James Corden
The comedy follows the blossoming romance of Gavin Shipman (Matthew Horne) and Stacey West (Joanna Page). Shipman is from Essex and West is from Barry in Wales.
Corden and Jones appear as their respective best friends Smithy and Nessa.
Nessa’s catchphrase – “what’s occurring?” – is one of many widely quoted lines from the programme.
Other well-known actors in the cast include Rob Brydon, Melanie Walters, Alison Steadman and Larry Lamb.
A Christmas Day return for the series had been rumoured earlier this year after reports in US media.
Jones had previously denied the claims, but now the show’s comeback has been officially confirmed.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
The last special ended on a cliffhanger as audiences eagerly awaited Smithy’s response to Nessa’s marriage proposal.
The 2019 special was watched by around 18 million viewers.
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