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Kirsty McCormack & Siobhan Macdonald & Abbie Meehan

Petition to axe This Morning stars Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby reaches 50K signatures

A petition that is aiming to axe Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby from This Morning has reached a whopping 50,000 signatures.

The TV presenters have faced extreme backlash from the public after photos hit social media of them allegedly "queue-jumping" to see the late Queen Elizabeth II lying in state.

As reported by the Daily Record, the presenting pair released a statement that they did not have to join the queue, as they were reporting on the events as members of the press.

READ MORE - King Charles III's puffy fingers spark concern as doctor reveals possible cause

Addressing the backlash, Phil and Holly assured fans that they "would never jump the queue". Despite the statement, a petition was started on Change.org to "axe" them from the public's television screens.

The petition, titled "Axe Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby from TV", was started by a Laura Harrison on Saturday, September 17, 2022. Laura wrote: "If enough people sign we can show ITV that the public do matter", and called the pair "toxic".

After surpassing the original signature target of 15,000 by a country mile, it has now reached 50,000 signatures. Sources close to Holly say she has no intention of stepping aside from a job she loves as her and Phil weather the storm.

Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield join grievers in coffin queue. (Unknown)

A TV source told The Mirror: "The abuse has been nothing short of disgusting, not least as they have done nothing wrong and were fully entitled to media accreditation so they could inform their viewers.

"There is huge, real and serious concerns over their wellbeing and ITV are fully supporting them behind the scenes in the face of such relentless trolling. The channel backs them 110 per cent."

Sources say that Holly and Phil have felt reassured by ITV's stance, and dismissed rumours that Holly could even quit the show, or that her job was in peril.

The source added: "She adores her job and would never quit. The whole experience has been totally brutal but one thing has remained constant, and that’s been ITV’s unwavering support."

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