Inside Holly Willoughby’s ‘year from hell’ – from co-star’s affair to kidnap plot

Holly Willoughby has faced a challenging year in the spotlight, dealing with everything from her co-host’s affair to being the target of an alleged kidnap plot.

The 43-year-old presenter was criticised for her handling of the fallout from her former co-host and close friend Phillip Schofield’s admission of an “unwise but not illegal” affair, which led him to sever ties with ITV completely.

Holly returned to This Morning without him, but felt compelled to leave the daytime show after 14 years, just five months later. Her life took a dramatic turn when it emerged that she was the target of an alleged kidnap and murder plot.

The trial involving shopping centre security officer Gavin Plumb started today (June 24). He is charged with soliciting a man, David Nelson, to commit murder and incitement to commit kidnap.

Plumb, 37, is accused of planning to put together a “kidnap and restraint kit” and encouraging a third party to travel to the UK to carry out the alleged crimes. It was reported that Holly was under “around-the-clock police guard” last October, with officers seen outside her London home, which she shares with husband Dan Baldwin and their three children, reports the Mirror.

The TV host has not made any public comment about the alleged plot or the arrest of the suspect. At the time, she stayed off-screen for more than a week, before then announcing her permanent departure from This Morning.

Phillip Schofield scandal

Rumours about Holly’s rocky relationship with her best mate and This Morning co-star Phillip Schofield had been doing the rounds for ages before Phil shockingly packed it in back in May 2023. He came clean about having an “unwise but not illegal” fling with a younger runner behind the scenes at the hit show and then ditched ITV for good.

Phil was left high and dry after his reps gave him the boot, with the telly fave confessing he’d “lost everything”. Holly piped up to say she felt “hurt” by the scandal and made it crystal clear she hadn’t a clue about the affair as she laid into Phil’s “lies”.

In a tell-all chat with the BBC, in which Phil insisted he was “not a groomer”, he spoke on why he called time on the secret romance. The celeb also dished on his final chat with Holly before they cut ties.

“The last time we had a conversation was when I texted Holly and said, ‘Don’t reply’ this was after the statement last week ‘Don’t reply, you’re probably not allowed to, but I am deeply deeply sorry that I lied to you. And I am. It was the one secret in our sanctuary that was never mentioned.'”

After taking some time off, Holly was back on the This Morning couch, facing the music live on telly, with Josie Gibson giving her a shoulder to lean on. She looked jittery as she clung to Josie’s hand, kicking things off with a concerned: “Are you OK?”

The speech was brief yet impactful, but viewers were left questioning her choice of words, with accusations flying that she had metaphorically thrown her former co-host “under the bus”. One viewer took to Twitter to say: “That speech was… underwhelming. Holly kind of confirmed there is no love lost between her and Phil, she seems still mad at him. But from HER side, she did not say how much she knew. She could have denied having any knowledge. Her statement was very economical. #ThisMorning.”

Despite Phil’s exit, This Morning found itself in the hot seat over claims of a bullying culture within the programme, which was labelled as “toxic”. ITV chief executive Dame Carolyn McCall was grilled by MPs in August 2023 about the situation and urged the parliamentary committee to “encourage individuals to contact ITV via our reporting line SafeCall” for confidential or anonymous reports.

She also mentioned that staff members could reach out to Jane Mulcahy KC, who was spearheading an external review of the facts following Schofield’s departure.

The report revealed that ITV made “considerable efforts” to uncover the truth about an alleged affair between Phillip Schofield and a runner on This Morning in 2019. However, it was not until Schofield’s admission in late May 2023 that they found they were “unable to uncover the relevant evidence”.

The external review also disclosed that Phillip “reluctantly declined” to be interviewed by Jane Mulcahy KC due to health reasons, and the unnamed individual involved in the affair also refused to participate.

NTAs Snub

The National Television Awards have always been a grand celebration for the team behind This Morning, with Holly and Phil often presenting the next day’s show still dressed in their glamorous attire from the previous night. But the 2023 ceremony painted a different picture amidst the chaos, with Phil absent and Holly failing to secure a presenter nomination.

Breaking its 13-year winning streak, This Morning did not receive the NTA for Best Daytime Show. Instead, The Repair Shop bagged the Daytime win, which some observant fans believe led to Holly appearing teary-eyed.

Holly later posted a heartfelt message to The Repair Shop’s Jay Blades after missing out on the award, and enjoyed a burger on her way home from London’s O2 Arena. Alongside a monochrome selfie with the Repair Shop host, she penned: “To this gorgeous man @jaybladesmbe and the whole team at the @therepairshoptv … Hugest Congratulations! ! ! And what a night for the incredible Sarah Lancashire… @joeldommett thank you for a great night… See you in the morning.”

This Morning exit

By September, it was disclosed that Holly had grand plans for a hosting revamp amid concerns she could be dropped due to her involvement in the Phil scandal. A source claimed to Heat magazine: “As well as spending a lot of time planning the refreshed show this summer, Holly has been in contact with the new line-up of co-hosts. She wants the show to move away from the spotlight on one presenter, to a more diverse array of talent right. Going forward, she envisions the team taking a more flexible approach, as there are plenty of opportunities for getting involved.”

A month later, she declared she was stepping down from the daytime programme after 14 years “for me and my family”. Her exit coincided with a man being charged with soliciting to commit murder over an alleged scheme to kidnap the TV star.

Holly Willoughby stunned her followers as she announced: “I have let ITV know today that after 14 years, I will not be returning to This Morning,” in a heartfelt Instagram post. She expressed her gratitude: “It’s been an honour to just be part of its story and I know this story has many chapters left to go. Sadly, however, I now feel I have to make this decision for me and my family. I will miss you all so much.”

The telly icon, aged 43, didn’t hold back on the love for her team, sharing: “This is such a difficult goodbye, you are incredible and I forever will be proud of what we’ve done together.”

Warm thanks poured out: “Thank you to everyone at ITV for being supportive. To every guest who has sat on our sofa, thank you. Most of all, thank you to the wonderful viewers. You’ve been so loyal, so supportive and the very best company every day.”

Despite putting on a brave face for her departure, aiming to focus on her family, it’s reported Holly was battling sadness linked to Phil Schofield’s own exit from the show a mere five months earlier. The dynamic duo famously conquered daytime telly and shared a strong bond off-screen, backing each other during personal milestones and braving public scrutiny like “Queuegate” side by side.

According to insiders, their tight-knit friendship made Phil’s scandal and his leaving all the more painful for Holly, ultimately influencing her decision to step away.

The Daily Mail dropped a bombshell with an insider claiming “she never got over it” and that she “misses” her former co-presenting partner of 14 years. Digging deeper, they said: “You wonder if she regrets the fallout. Look at everything that has happened as a result. It’s really sad.”

The plot thickened when Phil reportedly reached out to Holly following the news that she was the target of an alleged kidnap threat, sparking questions about whether their once strong bond could be mended.

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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk