Eamonn Holmes gloats he’s ‘proud to have thrown Phillip Schofield under the bus’

Eamonn Holmes has launched a scathing attack on his former ITV co-star Phillip Schofield, saying he’s ‘proud to have thrown him under the bus’.

Schofield, 62, is making his huge TV comeback tonight on Channel 5’s reboot of Cast Away, after spending months away from the spotlight since his This Morning exit.

The former Dancing On Ice star quit the programme in May 2023, after he admitted to having an ‘unwise but not illegal’ affair with a younger colleague and amid an alleged feud with his former co-star Holly Willoughby.

He’s now vowed to ‘say whatever I want about whatever I want’, with the three-part series showing him opening up about his mental health struggles, taking a swipe at Holly, and making his thoughts about his former employer ITV well and truly known.

After the news of his comeback was announced, Eamonn had a savage initial response, however, he’s now taken it one step further.

The 64-year-old fumed: ‘If I am one of the people who threw him under the bus, I am very proud to have done it and protected children, people who are underage.’

He went on: ‘People seem to be forgetting this and they’re making it out to be one situation, one kiss, one relationship, believe it if you want, fine.

‘But I believe he is where he deserves to be.’

Eamonn’s co-host Isabel Webster stepped in to clarify that Schofield’s actions were not illegal, but he admitted they were ‘ill advised’.

Eamonn fumed: ‘He fertles with an underage boy, and you can work out when it started or not, there’s all sorts of talk as to when these relationships started or not.

‘This man is addicted to fame, absolutely addicted to fame.

‘Funny, nobody is going to put Huw Edwards on a desert island and say, “Huw, tell us about your experiences.” But they will put Phillip Schofield on.’

An external review into This Morning, carried out by Jane Mulcahy KC on behalf of ITV found the channel made ‘considerable efforts’ to find out the truth about an alleged affair between Schofield and a runner in 2019, but was not able to find evidence about the rumours.

Schofield ‘reluctantly declined’ to take part in the probe because of ‘the risk to his health’, the report in December 2023 said.

This isn’t the first time Eamonn has ripped into his former co-star, amid an alleged feud over recent years.

Speaking of his time on Cast Away, Schofield said: ‘I’ve recently had a lot of time to think about my life, what went right and what went wrong, but I’ve always had the safe arms of friends and family wrapped around me.

‘This time it’s just me, no ‘phone, no comforts, no crew and only lip balm as a luxury.’ He also spoke about ‘foraging and fending’ for himself in ‘the wild’ like ‘Robinson Crusoe’ or ‘Tom Hanks’ Wilson’.

In a preview of the new show, he added: ‘I’ve been cast away on a desert island, completely on my own.

‘All I have is camera gear, and I can say whatever I want about whatever I want.

‘It’s my chance to tell my side of my story.’

He adds: ‘I know what I did was unwise, but is it enough to absolutely destroy someone?’