Piers Morgan has said Holly Willoughby was left in an "impossible position" as she returned to This Morning following Phillip Schofield's departure.
The former Good Morning Britain host says Holly's hardest problem now will be finding Phil's replacement.
It comes after the This Morning star returned to work for the first time since Phillip quit the show and ITV after admitting to an affair with a younger colleague.
Piers, who has known Phillip for 35 years, says he looks "completely broken" following the news.
" Phillip Schofield is a broken guy, he’s not going to work on television again almost certainly. He’s lost everything in his life," he said.
"I don’t know what more the baying mob on Twitter wants from Phillip Schofield that he hasn’t already lost?”
Piers said: "I like Holly Willoughby, she is a good friend of mine… she is in an impossible position. She had to come back contractually and do what she did.”
"It is not funny for her… it's tough, it’s difficult. You are in an arranged marriage in these situations. I was in one myself and suddenly you are divorced, right?"
He added: "The hardest problem for Holly Willoughby will be who to replace him with. Poor old Susanna Reid, she's been through about 15 blokes now and none of them live up to me… I was trying to say that with a straight face.”
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When addressing if he knew about the affair, Piers said "a lot of people at ITV knew" about the rumours.
The divisive presenter has publicly sympathised with Phillip following his own abrupt exit from ITV's Good Morning Britain in 2021 after he accused Meghan Markle of lying in her Oprah Winfrey interview.
He described Phil's initial downfall as 'brutal to watch' before hitting out at the, "ruthless backstabbing in the world of daytime television."
"One minute Schofield was the undisputed king of morning TV and fast heading to bona fide national treasure status – the next he's a dethroned, shamed, vilified, national disgrace and social media laughing stock," Piers wrote.
Holly returned to the daytime show on Monday which is said to have been "highly strategised".
Sources have claimed Holly thought about everything from the colour of her dress, to what she was going to say, and had discussed it all with her team as well as those high up at This Morning.
In her lengthy speech at the start of the show, Holly said she felt "shaken, troubled and let down" by the revelations that had come out about her co-star.
"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," she said.
"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 they had to resign from ITV, and step down from a career that they loved. That's a lot to process."
She added: "And it's equally hard to see the toll that it's taken on their own mental health. I think what unites us now is a 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."
Concluding her speech, she said: "And, from my heart, can I just say thank you for all of your kind messages.
"And thank you for being here this morning. Myself, Josie, Dermot, Alison, Craig and every single person that works on this show will continue to work hard every single day to bring you this show that we love."
Watch Piers Morgan Uncensored, Monday to Thursday on TalkTV at 8pm.
