Phillip Schofield says he’s been ‘hung out to dry’ as Holly friendship ‘in tatters’

Despite being axed from This Morning, Phillip Schofield thinks he’s been “hung out to dry” by ITV and believes his friendship is in “tatters”.

Growing tensions between himself and his former co-host, as well as the announcement of his brother’s imprisonment, saw Phillip get the sack from This Morning earlier this week.

But the veteran presenter, who hosted the show for 18 years, fought with ITV bosses to secure his fate.

READ MORE: Holly Willoughby ‘threatened to walk’ if Phillip Schofield didn’t quit This Morning

Despite this, Phil isn’t impressed with how things went down.

An intense showdown during meetings at ITV Daytime saw Phil fight for his roles at the television network giant, agreeing to only step down from This Morning if his other hosting gigs were guaranteed.

His roles on other shows like Dancing on Ice will remain active, whilst the 61-year-old wangled a new show that he will host solo.

Phil departed from This Morning after the public feud between himself and Holly Willoughby hit a new breaking point, when his brother, Tim, was arrested for eleven counts of child sexual abuse.

The programme reported a loss of 100,000 viewers in a week, with British audiences unable to bear the on-screen awkwardness.

A source told The Mirror that in the end, Phil’s departure was a “unanimous decision”.

However, Phil still feels he has been “hung out to dry”, the source said, adding: “And his friendship with Holly is now in tatters.”

They continued: “He was upset, but firm that if he was going to walk away he wanted to keep his roles on The Cube, the British Soap Awards, and Dancing on Ice – crucially, with or without Holly.

“As far as he was concerned, if he was going to take one for the team, they would owe him.”

He released a statement explaining his hasty exit, announcing he was leaving to “protect the show that I love”.

ITV bosses even gave Phil time to take a last-minute holiday, scarpering from his West London home in order to avoid the limelight.

But insiders say that the Lancashire-born presenters feels he’s received the short end of the stick.

The uncomfortable tension between the pair seems to have progressed to passive-aggressive behaviour, as far as their statements are concerned.

In Phil’s statement released on Instagram yesterday, the 61-year-old made a point of thanking his supporters and the programme’s viewership, but made no mention of his co-star.

Whilst Holly’s statement, released by ITV, made direct reference to her relationship with Phil.

Holly wrote: “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.”

He is likely to replaced by another ITV host, with Alison Hammond currently tipped as the preferred choice.

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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk