British TV presenter Phillip Schofield has resigned from ITV after admitting he lied about a relationship he had with “a younger male colleague” at the This Morning programme.
In a statement released through the Daily Mail, the 61-year-old presenter apologised for lying about the relationship.
“The first thing I want to say is: I am deeply sorry for having lied to them (the Daily Mail), 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.”
The presenter added: “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.”
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In February 2020, Schofield came out as gay in an emotional on-air chat with co-presenter Holly Willoughby. His wife Stephanie later said she supported Schofield’s “brave step” and “always will” love him.
Schofield announced last week that he was stepping down from presenting the This Morning talk show with “immediate effect” after more than 20 years on the programme.
His departure came amid reports of a rift between Schofield and Willoughby and after his brother, Timothy Schofield, was sentenced to 12 years in jail after being convicted of child sex offences.
The broadcaster said after Schofield stepped down from This Morning that he would continue to present “peak time shows” for ITV including next month’s British Soap Awards and a new prime time series.
He had presented This Morning with Willoughby since 2009 and they also co-hosted ITV’s Dancing On Ice together.
Last year, the duo faced a backlash over claims they skipped the queue for Queen Elizabeth’s lying in state in September.
ITV has said Willoughby will remain on the show and will “co-present with members of the This Morning family”.
Alison Hammond and Craig Doyle stepped in to present This Morning on Wednesday, after Hammond and Dermot O’Leary filled in for the first two days since Schofield’s departure last week.
Schofield took pre-planned leave from This Morning around his brother’s sex abuse trial at Exeter Crown Court last month.
Former civilian police worker Timothy Schofield (54), was convicted of 11 sexual offences involving a child between October 2016 and October 2019, including two of sexual activity with a child following the court case. - PA