Phillip Schofield has broken his silence after admitting to having an affair with a younger man.
Last Friday, the 61-year-old released a statement to The Daily Mail, in which he revealed he had lied about his relationship with the man to ITV, his agents at YMU, his friends and his colleagues.
The TV personality also confessed to lying to The Mail on Sunday, which published the story earlier this month.
At the time of the admission, Phillip described his relationship with the younger man as “unwise, but not illegal”.
As part of his announcement, the TV personality revealed he had parted ways with ITV and his management agency YMU altogether – just days after announcing his immediate departure from This Morning.
Phillip has since broken his silence for the first time since admitting to the affair in a new interview with The UK Sun.
The 61-year-old said: “I was unprofessional, one time, in a 41-year career. There is no excuse. No one did anything wrong apart from me.”
“I did not, I did not [groom him],” Phillip insisted.
“There are accusations of all sorts of things. It never came across that way because we’d become mates. I don’t know about that.”
“But of course I understand that there will be a massive judgment, but bearing in mind, I have never exercised that anywhere else.”
“At the time I did not think about it possibly ruining my career. I really probably only thought about it when I saw the rumour mill, and saw it growing.”
“Then I saw the link with the drama school photo all those years before, and thought, ‘This looks shocking.”
“But I didn’t lie to protect my career, he didn’t want his name in public. He wanted his own life.”
The 61-year-old claimed the affair began in 2017 following a “consensual moment” in his dressing room.
He claims it was “not a love affair, it was not a relationship, we were not boyfriends; we were mates”.
During the interview, Phillip apologised a number of time – including to his former This Morning co-host Holly Willoughby, and his wife of 30 years Stephanie; however, he said his “greatest apology” was to the man.
“It has brought the greatest misery into his totally innocent life, his totally innocent family, his totally innocent friends. It has brought the greatest grief to them,” the father-of-two said.
“I am deeply sorry and I apologise to him because I should have known better. I should have acted the way I have always acted. I should not have done it.”
“I’m sorry. And I will forever be sorry. I will die sorry. I am so deeply mortified.”
Last Friday, Phillip released a statement admitting to the affair, which read: “I am making this statement via the Daily Mail to whom I have already apologised personally for misleading, through my lawyer who I also misled, about a story which they wanted to write about me a few days ago.”
“The first thing I want to say is: I am deeply sorry for having lied to them, and to many others about a relationship that I had with someone working on This Morning. I did have a consensual on-off relationship with a younger male colleague at This Morning.”
“Contrary to speculation, whilst I met the man when he was a teenager and was asked to help him to get into television, it was only after he started to work on the show that it became more than just a friendship. That relationship was unwise, but not illegal. It is now over.”
“When I chose to come out I did so entirely for my own wellbeing. Nobody “forced” me out. Neither I nor anyone else, to my knowledge, has ever issued an injunction, super or otherwise, about my relationship with this colleague, he was never moved on or sacked by or because of me.”
“In an effort to protect my ex-colleague I haven’t been truthful about the relationship,” Phillip’s statement continued.
“But my recent, unrelated, departure from This Morning fuelled speculation and raised questions which have been impacting him, so for his sake it is important for me to be honest now.”
“I am painfully conscious that I have lied to my employers at ITV, to my colleagues and friends, to my agents, to the media and therefore the public and most importantly of all to my family. I am so very, very sorry, as I am for having been unfaithful to my wife.”
The 61-year-old also revealed that he has quit ITV altogether, stating: “I have therefore decided to step down from the British Soap Awards, my last public commitment, and am resigning from ITV with immediate effect expressing my immense gratitude to them for all the amazing opportunities that they have given me.”
“I will reflect on my very bad judgement in both participating in the relationship and then lying about it,” the 61-year-old continued.
“To protect his privacy, I am not naming this individual and my deepest wish is that both he and his family can now move on with their lives free from further intrusion, and that this statement will enable them to do so. I ask the media now to respect their privacy. They have done nothing wrong, and I ask that their privacy should be respected.”
Phillip also parted ways with his management team YMU after 35 years.
Mary Bekhait, the Group CEO of YMU Group, said: “Honesty and integrity are core values for YMU’s whole business, defining everything we do. Talent management is a relationship based entirely on trust.”
“This week, we have learned important new information about our client Phillip Schofield,” Ms Bekhait continued. “These facts contradicted what Phillip had previously told YMU, as well as the external advisors we had brought in to support him.”
“As a result, on Thursday we agreed to part company with Phillip, with immediate effect.”
The news came just days after Phillip announced his departure from This Morning with immediate effect amid his ongoing “feud” with Holly Willoughby.
Last month, Phillip said in a statement: “I have always been proud to cover fascinating stories on This Morning. But recently, This Morning itself has become the story.”
“Throughout my career in TV – including the very difficult last few days – I have always done my best to be honourable and kind.”
“I understand that ITV has decided the current situation can’t go on, and I want to do what I can to protect the show that I love. So, I have agreed to step down from This Morning with immediate effect, in the hope that the show can move forward to a bright future.”
“I’d like to thank everyone who has supported me – especially This Morning’s amazing viewers – and I’ll see you all for the Soap Awards next month,” Phillip added.
Holly then said in a statement: “Hi guys. It’s been over 13 great years presenting This Morning with Phil and I want to take this opportunity to thank him for all of his knowledge, his experience and his humour,” adding: “The sofa won’t feel the same without him.”
Check out the first episode of our brand new podcast Goss Island, where host Alan Cawley sits down with Goss.ie Founder & CEO Alexandra Ryan about what’s to come on the summer series of Love Island 2023.
Alan and Ali chat about the highs and lows from previous seasons, and share their predictions for the series ahead.
Now live across all streaming platforms, including Spotify and iTunes, you can also watch the entire episode from start to finish on our YouTube channel.
Goss Island is brought to you by F&F, Fashion at Tesco.
Available in over 80 Tesco stores nationwide, F&F is your one-stop shop this summer season, with versatile pieces and wardrobe essentials to dress the whole family for a day out, a day at the beach or a BBQ in the back garden!
Explore their latest summer clothing collection – a perfect blend of style, comfort and versatility, in stores now.
