Phillip Schofield affair cover-up only tip of the iceberg, says journalist behind reveal

After the reveal of the affair that former This Morning co-host Phillip Schofield had with a younger man, the network behind the series ITV has come under fire.

The Mail claims that when they tried to run a story on uneasiness among the cast and crew on This Morning in 2021, ITV made use of an expensive lawyer to have the news shut down. The network insisted that any news of there being a toxic environment on the show were untrue.

Even Schofield, who stepped away from the show after spending two decades as a presenter, took to defending This Morning. “This Morning IS the best show to work on, with the best people. In all the years I worked there, there was no toxicity.”

Despite ITV claiming that they had set up an external investigation force to look into the claims, The Mail reports that the culture around the show is so toxic that some people had to undergo therapy.

Other people have, they detail, had to sign non-disclosure agreements after receiving pay off packages to cover up the reality of their atmosphere, with one ex-employee claiming it was a “bullying and toxic blame culture.”

There have also been several claims of sexism, with women in the higher ranks taking it up against the bosses as a genuine concern, however it did not lead to any results. There have been reports that many ITV bosses were well aware of the affair between Schofield and his much younger colleague and that they even helped him cover it up, according to former host of the show Eamonn Holmes.