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Sonia Sharma

Phillip Schofield dropped as ambassador for Prince's Trust after This Morning scandal

Former This Morning host Phillip Schofield has been axed as an ambassador for the Prince's Trust.

The 61-year-old resigned from ITV last week and was dropped by his talent agency YMU after admitting to an "unwise but not illegal" affair with a younger male colleague. The relationship took place while the TV star was still married to wife Stephanie Lowe and before he came out publicly as gay.

The Prince's Trust, which was founded in 1976 by King Charles, helps youngsters who face disadvantage or adversity by supporting them to find work, start businesses, or gain vital education and training. It has a number of celebrity ambassadors who support the charity through fundraising or promoting its work.

Read More: Should This Morning be axed? Have your say on the ITV show in our poll

A Prince's Trust spokesperson said: "In light of Phillip's recent admissions, we have agreed with him that it is no longer appropriate to work together."

Since Schofield's resignation, This Morning has been plagued by allegations of "toxicity". Speaking on Dan Wootton's GB News show on Monday, Eamonn Holmes said he was "tossed out the door" when he was given the boot from ITV.

The show's former resident doctor, Dr Ranj Singh, also hit out at the show's "toxic" culture, saying he raised concerns about "bullying and discrimination" when he worked there and afterwards felt like he was "managed out" for whistleblowing.

On Saturday, an ITV spokesperson said: "Further to our statement last night, ITV can confirm that when rumours of a relationship between Phillip Schofield and an employee of ITV first began to circulate in early 2020 ITV investigated. Both parties were questioned and both categorically and repeatedly denied the rumours, as did Phillip's then agency YMU.

"In addition, ITV spoke to a number of people who worked on This Morning and were not provided with, and did not find, any evidence of a relationship beyond hearsay and rumour. Phillip's statement yesterday reveals that he lied to people at ITV, from senior management to fellow presenters, to YMU, to the media and to others over this relationship."

In an Instagram post on Monday, Schofield hit back at his critics, saying there was "no toxicity" on This Morning. He added: "I hope you have noticed that it's the same handful of people with a grudge against me or the show who seem to have the loudest voice."

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