Fern Britton has been speaking about the state of her friendship with former co-host Phillip Schofield in the wake of his dramatic departure from This Morning.
The former pals had put on a united front as they hosted the ITV daytime show together between 2003 and 2009 before rumours emerged of a backstage fallout before Fern announced plans to quit.
Their fractured partnership was brought back into the limelight in May as Fern revealed she'd been catching up with her fellow ex-This Morning star Eamonn Holmes, who has made no secret of his disdain for Schofield.
In a new interview, Fern admitted that while she had a 'marvellous' experience on the ITV daytime show she is still not speaking to Phillip.
"We were involved in the show and mates at the time," Fern confirmed, adding "we don't really [speak anymore]," she told Good Housekeeping.
Fern was also asked on the possibility of her returning to daytime TV now that Phillip had gone.
"I don' think that i'd be able to turn the clock back. It wouldn't work that way. My time at This Morning was marvellous and I adored the 10 years I was there but I feel you should never look back."
Fern had raised eyebrows amongst her following when she revealed she was 'shooting the breeze' with Eamonn Holmes after their rumoured frenemy had left This Morning in spectacular fashion.
Phil walked after admitting an 'unwise but not illegal' affair with a male colleague while he was still married.
After Eamonn Holmes went on several Twitter rants claiming 'everyone knew' about Phil's secret, Fern shared with fans the duo had been enjoying a catch up.
"Unexpected phone calls from old mates are so lovely. Just ha the loveliest catch up with Eamonn Holmes," said Fern.
Comparing her working relationship to Phil to his incredibly close bond with Holly Willoughby, Fern said previously "We chose not to live in each other's pockets. We had a great professional partnership but we never went on holiday together."
Before their friendship soured, Phil and Holly would regularly boast of their family holidays and boozy tequila nights together as their relationship took off away from the small screen.
While Fern appeared to free herself from all bonds with her former job when she left, even refusing to take part in the 25th or 30th anniversary celebrations despite being a major and much-loved part of the show.
Phil also claimed that Fern did not reach out to him after he game out as gay in 2020.
In his autobiography Life Is What You Make It, Phil admitted he'd rowed with Fern when she accused him of 'meddling' with the format.
"I walked back nto the make-up room and calmly said, "Please don't do that to me again.
"I think for whatever reason it was that point Fern decided she didn't want to do This Morning any more."
