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Piers Morgan has reacted to Phillip Schofield\u2019s \u201cbrutal\u201d dethroning from ITV\u2019s This Morning in a scathing, no holds barred column. <\/p>\n
On Saturday (20 May), Schofield announced he was quitting his presenting role on the ITV show. <\/p>\n
His departure came amid reports of a rift between him and fellow presenter Holly Willoughby, and after his brother, Timothy Schofield, was sentenced to 12 years in jail on Friday (19 May), following his conviction on child sex offences.<\/p>\n
Follow The Independent\u2019s Schofield live blog for updates<\/p>\n
Days after his farewell, Morgan penned an op-ed for The Sun, admitting he found the aftermath of Schofield\u2019s exit \u201cbrutal to watch\u201d and yet \u201centirely unsurprising\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne minute Schofield was the undisputed king of morning TV and fast heading to bona fide national treasure status \u2013 the next he\u2019s a dethroned, shamed, vilified, national disgrace and social media laughing stock,\u201d he wrote. <\/p>\n
\u201cPhillip\u2019s not the evil monster he\u2019s being painted as, nor is he the angel his previously halo-clad reputation suggested.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne thing\u2019s for sure, what\u2019s happened to him is further evidence that the abyss-like depths of ruthless backstabbing in the world of daytime television makes even the seething cesspit of Westminster politics seem like an oasis of loyalty by comparison.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Piers admitted that he didn\u2019t \u201cknow the full story behind Phillip Schofield\u2019s downfall\u201d, he said he felt \u201cpersonal empathy with him\u201d over the manner of his departure. <\/p>\n
Piers Morgan said it was \u2018churlish\u2019 not to let Phillip Schofield say a \u2018proper goodbye\u2019 to his audience <\/p>\n
(Getty Images)<\/p>\n
\u201cFor ITV to not even give him the chance to say a proper goodbye to his large, loyal audience after 21 years struck me as needlessly churlish, and I know he\u2019s utterly heartbroken about it because he told me himself,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n
The former Good Morning Britain presenter compared Schofield\u2019s \u201csacking\u201d \u2013 terminology ITV has since argued against \u2013 to his own unceremonious exit from the broadcaster\u2019s morning show in 2021. <\/p>\n
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\u201cThese two-faced wastrels would billow constant adoring smoke up my a** to my face and bask in the reflected glory of the soaring ratings and awards that I brought in,\u201d Morgan said, \u201cbut behind my back many of the same smiley, happy, nicey-nicey people were pouring toxic buckets of foul-mouthed manure over me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can always tell the real weasels by the way they gleefully trash every other presenter in your presence \u2013 but deludedly assume you won\u2019t think they\u2019re doing it [to] you too,\u201d he added, before acknowledging that \u201cnot everyone in daytime TV is like that\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI met a lot of good, decent people when I worked in that environment, and took some of them with me when I joined TalkTV.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Independent has contacted ITV for comment. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter for all the latest entertainment news and reviewsSign up to our free IndyArts newsletter Piers Morgan has reacted to Phillip Schofield\u2019s \u201cbrutal\u201d dethroning from ITV\u2019s This Morning in a scathing, no holds barred column. On Saturday (20 May), Schofield announced he was quitting his presenting role on the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2046,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2045","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n