This Morning presenter Holly Willoughby returned to the This Morning sofa on Monday, June 5 after Phillip Schofield’s scandal and departure. Holly, 42, had been on a two week half-term break following the shock departure of her former co-host and his subsequent admission of an affair with a younger ITV male employee.
She addressed the audience at the start of the show, shortly after thanking replacement co-host Josie Gibson for her support. Opening the show, Holly said: "Hi there - good morning. Josie thank you for being here. Right - deep breath. Firstly are you okay? I hope so. It feels very strange indeed sitting here without Phil and I imagine that you might have been feeling a lot like I have - shaken, troubled, let down, worried for the wellbeing of people on all sides of what's been going on and full of questions.
"You, me, and all of us at This Morning gave our love and support to someone who was not telling the truth, who acted in a way that they themselves felt that they had to resign from ITV and step down from the career that they loved."
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Taking a deep breath, Holly continued: "That is a lot to process and it is equally hard to see the toll that it has taken on their own mental health. I think what unites us all now is the desire to heal, for the health and wellbeing of everyone. I hope that as we start this new chapter and get back to a place of warmth and magic, that this show holds for all of us, we can find strength in each other. And from my heart can I just say thank you for all of your kind messages and thank you for being here this morning."
Some viewers took to social media to praise Holly's message, which has split opinion. One Twitter user said: "[To be honest] I feel so sorry for Holly and I think her statement was short and to the point; good on her I say."
Another added: "Well done Holly, you introduced the show well with Josie beside you."
"Well done Holly for not giving up, your message was very heartfelt, you have so (much) support around you at the studio (and) within the This Morning viewers," a Twitter user said.
Others called for Holly to be replaced for the good of the show, questioning her sincerity. One person on Twitter posted: "Oh Holly! Poor form! I never blamed you whether you knew or not. But I don't buy the sincerity of this. So disappointing. I don't want this to come across as trolling but you didn't do yourself proud on this one.
Another said: "Delivered with all the sincerity of a politician." One viewer called for more change on the show, stating: "Love Josie but missing Alison and Dermot. Time for Holly to move on, the dynamics aren’t right."
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