Phillip Schofield says TV career is over in BBC interview after affair
"I did something very wrong, and then I lied about it consistently."
Phillip Schofield has spoken out in a new BBC interview following the past week's news of his exit from ITV due to an affair with a younger male colleague on This Morning.
In the interview, Schofield told Amol Rajan that his "career is over" following the affair and that it was a "grave error", stating: "I shouldn't have done it."
Schofield said that he doubted he would return to a television career, saying: "I have to talk about television in the past tense, which breaks my heart. I have lost everything."
He continued: "What am I going to do with my days? I see nothing ahead of me but blackness, and sadness, and regret, and remorse, and guilt. I did something very wrong, and then I lied about it consistently."
Last week, it was confirmed that Schofield had parted ways with his talent management representation YMU over contradictory information he had told them and that he had stepped down from his roles at ITV, which also included hosting the upcoming British Soap Awards 2023.
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Speaking about his former colleague with whom he had the affair, Schofield told Rajan: "He is an innocent party here. I was older, I should have known better. [The affair] was consensual, but it was my fault."
He was also pushed on claims that there had been an abuse of power, to which he said: "I understand that, and it's a very valid question to put to me. If it's an abuse of power, it's not in my nature to be that person, but of course it could be perceived as that. But that wasn't how it felt at the time."
Read more:
- Phillip Schofield defends This Morning against toxicity claims
- ITV releases statement on previous Phillip Schofield relationship investigation
Schofield went on to suggest that he thinks homophobia is a factor in the way that some people have disapproved of their relationship, saying: "If it was male-female then it wouldn't be such a scandal."
ITV released a statement on Saturday 27th May saying that "when rumours of a relationship between Phillip Schofield and an employee of ITV first began to circulate in early 2020 ITV investigated", and that the broadcaster was "not provided with, and did not find, any evidence of a relationship beyond hearsay and rumour".
ITV has now instructed a barrister to carry out an external review to establish the facts about how ITV handled its own investigation into rumours of the affair in 2020.
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In a statement announcing his resignation on Friday 26th May, Schofield told the Daily Mail: "I am so very, very sorry, as I am for having been unfaithful to my wife.
"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."
Jane McDonald has now been confirmed to be stepping into the role of Soap Awards 2023 host following Schofield's departure, with no official word yet on his replacements on This Morning or Dancing on Ice.
Phillip Schofield: The Interview is available to watch on BBC iPlayer. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to see what's on tonight.
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