Phillip Schofield has defended Joe Lycett for “taking a stand” as his £10k shredding World Cup stunt continues to divide opinion.
The This Morning star, 60, appeared on Monday’s episode (November 21) of the ITV show alongside Holly Willoughby to discuss the comedian placing £10,000 of his own money in a shredder as promised.
Joe’s divisive move followed David Beckham ignoring his request to step down as World Cup ambassador following concerns about Qatar’s human rights record and discriminatory LGBTQ+ legislation.
READ MORE:Joe Lycett shreds £10K after ‘gay icon’ David Beckham fails to quit ‘£10m’ Qatar deal
Defending Joe during a heated debate, Phil said: “Would he have got the same amount of publicity [by giving the money to a charity]?
“Are we making Joe a villain here for taking a stand against Qatar’s regime?”
Also supporting Joe’s efforts, Holly added: “He was trying to the right thing, wasn’t he?
“It has a good intention behind it.”
The comments followed This Morning contributor Vanessa Feltz labelling the cash-shredding stunt “disappointing” and a “waste”.
Vanessa said: “Couldn’t he have thought of something else to do with the money?
(Image: ITV)
“I would have preferred he just went to the local bus stop and gave it out to people in the street rather than destroy that money. It can make such a difference.
“Why would he destroy it?
“I’m really disappointed in this. It’s such a waste.”
She later added: “I love him, I love the stand. He’s a great guy. I really admire him but I just wish the twist wasn’t ‘destroy the money’.
(Image: @joelycett/Instagram)
“I wish it was ‘give it to someone who needs it.'”
After making several attempts to contact David Beckham, Joe shredded the £10k in a video posted to social media as the Qatar World Cup kicked off on Sunday (November 20) alongside the caption: “A platform for progress.”
While some fans praised Joe’s money-shredding as “performance art”, others argued the money could have gone to better use had it been donated to a charitable cause.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
