JAN MOIR: Sanctimonious Phillip Schofield disguised his narcissism behind a toothy white smile
Oh, now there is going to be a probe. No sniggering at the back. The smoke of scandal engulfing Phillip Schofield, This Morning and ITV thickens by the day.
Now you can’t see the wood for the trees nor indeed the birds from the bees. And there is not an aggrieved ex-presenter nor a bruised former guest who is not going to have their say in the pile on.
Between increasingly regular tweakments, Eamonn Holmes is beaming in from what looks like the panic room in a home for retired anchors (both broadcast and naval varieties) on the South Coast. Speaking of heavy metal, Eamonn’s perma-furious wife Ruth Langsford has supposedly never recovered from the horror of Schofield cutting her off mid-sentence during a live link ten years ago.
Former pop star Kerry Katona says she was ‘suicidal’ after Schofield questioned her about her drinking during an interview, and on and on it goes.
No one, it seems, has a good word to say about the disgraced star, which says it all, really. Earlier in his career, Schofield famously broadcast from a BBC broom cupboard with his sidekick Gordon the Gopher, and in the light of recent revelations, isn’t it time we heard Gordon’s story, too?
ITV has brought in a top barrister to launch a probe into the scandal surrounding Philip Schofield (left) and Holly Willoughby (right)
Confession. There was a moment early in proceedings when yes, I tired of the This Morning scandal. Talk about overblown! Or perhaps let’s not, but was anyone really shocked that on a daytime television show, stars with big egos were not as nice as they appeared on screen?
Aren’t we forgetting that Lorraine Kelly once went to court to prove that she was a theatrical construct putting on a performance; method acting her way through lentil recipes and pretending to be interested in Aljaz and Janette’s Slovenian babymoon?
Yet Schofield’s duplicity was staggering in its depth and breadth. Sanctimonious on the sofa, he perfected a glutinous brand of narcissism disguised as altruism, all delivered with a toothy white smile.
Yet when the cameras were switched off, he somehow managed to persuade various members of the television show and its crew into indulging him and accommodating his then-secret lover, according the young man status and privileges he didn’t deserve, in the time-honoured tradition.
Those in power behaving badly and using their influence in ways that are not entirely proper? Get outta here. Next you will be telling me that a former British prime minister once tried to get a job in the Foreign Office for his then-girlfriend.
I have worked in the newspaper industry, magazine publishing and the music business, and behaviour like this, you will not be shocked to hear, is not unknown in all these spheres.
On the matrix where youth, beauty and ambition collide with those in authority holding the key that unlocks the door to celebrity and riches, there will always be relationships and trysts that are, to quote Schofield, unwise but not illegal. When I was behind the scenes on a television programme in the 1980s, it was no secret that the teenage female presenter was having an affair with the much older producer who may or may not have been married, I can’t remember.
Eyebrows were certainly raised, disapproval was not in short supply, but no one seriously thought any party was being groomed or bullied. In fact, if anyone was being terrorised into behaving inappropriately, it was the older man and not the highly motivated younger woman.
Philip Schofield stepped down from This Morning in May following revelations of his affair
However, what is different in this case, what makes it much more troubling is the lack of standardised ethics across the ITV network and how Schofield’s influence became pervasive. Unforgivably, he appears to have been given the freedom and space to encourage his lover to believe he had a future in showbusiness — although the expensive showreels This Morning were complicit in making tell a different, sadder Cinderfella story.
Now everyone is being dragged into the sinkhole, including St Holly the Mother Superior of the Blind Eye Convent, and an entire television network. ITV chiefs were quick to abandon and condemn the likes of Piers Morgan and Jeremy Clarkson for expressing an opinion that didn’t perfectly coalesce with correct woke-think.
Yet, if the rumours are to be believed, they seemingly allowed Phillip Schofield to pretend to be what he wasn’t, to lie to his wife and millions of This Morning viewers, to set himself up as a moral exemplar but to act like a despot behind his liberal aura.
In showbusiness, as in life these days, it’s who you are that counts, not what you say or do.
In the meantime, the identity of the broken young man at the centre of this scandal is generally being kept a secret, perhaps so that he can be left to pick up the pieces of his shattered life.
Yet it has to be said that when his affair with Phillip Schofield allegedly began he was an adult in control of his faculties and surely well aware of the potential mutual benefits that the relationship could bring?
Perhaps exactly like my former associate from the 1980s?
It is hard to say what the truth of the matter is, except that things certainly worked out better for her than for Phillip’s friend. Well done to the woman I will modestly refer to as Name Redacted, whose star quality was never in any doubt.
And now, back to the studio.
Shame on the sick ghouls who filmed a dying child
A 17-year-old and a 12-year-old died after getting into difficulties in the water around Bournemouth Pier (pictured)
God bless all those who rushed to the aid of the two youngsters who died at a beach in Bournemouth this week.
Not just the emergency workers who tried desperately to save them, but also those members of the public who stepped in to help. Like Bournemouth-born Dr Rob Rosa, a former GP.
He was on the promenade when the first child was brought to the beach and ran down to help when the second was brought in from the sea around 15 minutes later.
He spoke of his disgust that some youngsters on shore rushed over to film the tragic events on their phones as medics tried to save the lives of the victims.
Dr Rosa said: ‘Those videoing the desperate CPR attempts should think long and hard at their actions. The tragic death of a child is not something anyone should voyeuristically observe.’
Totally agree — but how to stop them? Everything is a drama to these desensitised goons. Even the darkest and saddest corners of the human experience are nothing but content for their TikTok channel or social media platforms.
Sometimes it is hard not to conclude that such a lack of humanity will presage the end of humanity. And they’d probably want to film that, too.
And Just Like That…Kim braves reunion
Kim Cattrall will briefly reprise her iconic role as man-eater Samantha Jones
Wonders do not cease. The actress Kim Cattrall once said she would never, ever return to Sex And The City, but now she is back for one episode only in the sequel to the classic series.
She will briefly reprise her iconic role as man-eater Samantha Jones in the finale of the second series of And Just Like That.
But will she have any scenes with Carrie, played by Sarah Jessica Parker? Yes, say insiders.
This is despite the two women falling out spectacularly over the script quality — or lack of — in the SATC movies.
However, relations are still on the Siberian side of frosty, so the scene is going to be a phone call between the two characters.
That way Kim (pictured) and SJP won’t even have to meet or be tempted into a bout of (designer) handbags in a face-to-face scenario. Honestly.
It’s like Batman and The Joker all over again, only with marginally more subtle make-up.
King’s tip to avoid a pain in the neck . . . visit Dracula’s trail
King Charles (pictured) enjoyed a walking holiday in Transylvania as Prince Harry arrived in the UK to head to court
King Charles has played an absolute blinder, booking a walking holiday in Transylvania just as Prince Harry is due to arrive in the UK for his latest appointment in court.
A walking holiday in Transylvania! It is the perfect excuse for any family occasion or social event you know you should attend but desperately want to avoid.
So sorry I can’t come, I’m on a walking holiday in Transylvania. I hear the vampires are lovely at this time of year!
Which reminds me. What do Prince Harry and Count Dracula have in common? You got it in one. They’re both a pain in the neck.
Comedian John Bishop (pictured) and his wife Mel celebrated their 30th anniversary this week
John Bishop and his wife Mel celebrated their 30th anniversary this week by taking their bridesmaids, ushers, best man and themselves off for a lovely break at Soho Farmhouse — what a loving and generous gesture.
At the anniversary party Mel hilariously wore her wedding dress and veil, both still fitted perfectly.
But best of all was the tribute husband John posted online, which almost had me in tears.
‘It is amazing how quickly three decades pass.
‘In that time there has been a million laughs and a million tears. Life doesn’t always comply with the perfect world that social media presents — no matter who you are, there are days when it’s hard to see a way through,’ he wrote.
‘There are some things I wish I had done better and there are others that blow my mind because they went so well.
‘After 30 years of marriage the one lesson I have learnt is that I am a stronger, better man because she is the person who holds my hand and guides me through when all I can see is darkness. She still fits in the dress and my heart still fits in her pocket.’
Isn’t that just lovely? Interestingly, the couple once split up — but went to counsellors to get their relationship back on track.
So don’t give up on love, people. Sometimes you’ve just got to hold on and fight for the right person — because it will be worth it in the end.
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