holly's hell
Emotional Holly Willoughby admits it was an ‘easy’ decision to quit This Morning as she breaks silence on ‘tough’ year
See what Holly had to say about returning to TV
HOLLY Willoughby has broken her silence on a tumultuous 18 months – admitting “it’s been tough”.
Speaking for the first time about leaving This Morning , the presenter, 43, revealed it was “an easy decision”.
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Holly stepped down from presenting work entirely after discovering a plot to kidnap and murder her.
It came just months after a very public falling out with her co-host Phillip Schofield, which ended with him leaving the show in May 2023.
She told : “It’s been tough. There’s no way of sugar-coating it.”
Discussing why she felt moving forward was her only option, the mum-of-three said: “Sometimes things go wrong, but you have to keep going for it because that’s all you can do.”
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Gavin Plumb was given three life sentences for planning to break into her home, then sedate, abduct and kill her and her husband.
Holly is now returning to the limelight with a new Netflix show alongside Bear Grylls - Celebrity Bear Hunt, as well as currently hosting Dancing on Ice.
Moving on
The star - is said to have cried during the interview - and when asked if she felt like she was a survivor, she said: "Nothing can prepare you for something like that.
"When something like that happens, you have a decision to make. You either decide, right, I can take this on board and it can absolutely affect all aspects of my life.
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"Or I can make a choice to go, let’s focus on everything that’s positive and good, all those important things."
Holly went on to list all the love she has in her life - from husband Dan, her children Harry, 15, and Chester, 10, and Belle, 13 and her friends.
First look at Holly Willoughby's new Netflix show as she screams in horror and celebrities clash over 'hell' tasks
She says she made the decision to allow the court to their job so she could move forward.
Schofield fallout
Looking back at the decision to leave This Morning after 14 years, with no new work lined up - Holly revealed it was a no brainer for her.
“That question is wrapped up in so many things that were going on at that time. But no. That was the last thing on my mind. The choice [to step away] was really simple and easy, actually," she said.
Phillip Schofield's resigned from This Morning after allegations of an inappropriate relationship with a younger colleague.
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He made his TV comeback on Channel 5's Cast Away, which SAW him opening up and lashing out at Holly and old ITV bosses Martin Frizell and Emma Gormley.
Whilst Schofield didn't name the three on air, he did make it clear he blames “three s**ts” for the end of his TV career and spectacular fall from fame.
Phil and Holly's relationship had appeared strained towards the end of their time on This Morning, with Phil later admitting he had lied to Holly about his affair with a younger male colleague.
Back on the box
Last month Holly returned to Dancing On Ice, a series she has presented, on and off, since 2006 — and much of that time she had her This Morning partner Phillip Schofield by her side.
Holly’s long-time pal Stephen Mulhern has replaced Phillip on the show.
She is currently promoting her new Netflix show, which airs next month, and features adventurer Bear Grylls chasing a line-up of famous names in the Costa Rican jungle.
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Holly and adventurer Bear, 50, filmed the brand new format last year.
The Sun exclusively revealed the star-studded lineup which includes Strictly's Shirley Ballas and rugby hunk Danny Cipriani.
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Cast Away verdict
By Rod McPhee
OVER three nights - and three hour-long episodes - Phillip Schofield has been bearing his soul in new Channel 5 show Cast Away.
And it's basically a chance for the former This Morning host to explain the circumstances that saw him leave the show last year.
To put it mildly, he left under something of a cloud, admitting he'd had a fling with a much younger runner on the programme. But in the C5 show he presents his own versions of events - one which is at odds with the narrative that emerged at the time.
He was portrayed as a man who'd had an "unwise" affair, who'd resigned as a result and had let many of his colleagues down.
But in Cast Away Philip insists he was fired by ITV and not for the affair, but because of the bad publicity that surrounded the crimes of his paedophile brother. He summed it up best when he claimed he'd been "pushed under a bus."
After watching Cast Away what you're left with is something rather confusing, however.
Did Philip think he'd done something wrong by having the fling with the runner, or not? For example, he said he wouldn't have been slammed for it quite so much if it were a heterosexual fling.
He said he: "would have received a pat on the back for having an affair with a woman." This infers that the only thing wrong with it was that it was a same sex fling. So why does he also say: "I will be forever sorry. I screwed up. I made a mistake."
The answer, I suspect, is that the whole affair was a murky business. There were so many blurred lines around appropriateness, professionalism and honesty.
The only firm conclusion you can draw from the show is that Phillip himself isn't ENTIRELY sure to what extent He was guilty of wrongdoing.
Amid the confusion, what will the viewing public think? I suspect that this will leave those who disliked Phillip to feel even more suspicious of him.
Those who backed him, will feel reassured too. But those who still aren't sure what to think will be none-the-wiser - and I'm not sure if that's what Phillip would have wanted.
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