Phillip Schofield ‘reported Holly Willoughby to senior ITV bosses’ after she refused to back him – as it emerges he calls her ‘The Witch’ and blames HER for his This Morning downfall

Phillip Schofield reported his former TV best friend and co-presenter Holly Willoughby to ITV chiefs after she refused to publicly support him, insiders claim.

Friends of the disgraced presenter say he felt Holly and a This Morning boss had staged a ‘very well engineered coup’ as the country witnessed his dramatic fall from grace.

Schofield, 62, left This Morning last May after months of speculation about a rift in his relationship with Ms Willoughby. He then admitted to having an affair with a junior colleague and left ITV altogether.

The pair used to be best friends, with their families even holidaying together annually, but the bitter feud appears to have reignited as Schofield calls his once good friend ‘the witch’.

Schofield is said to have told Ms Willoughby she was ‘putting him down’ before resigning from This Morning.

The Daily mirror reported that Schofield made the accusation in a WhatsApp message, saying she should have publicly supported him after their argument.

He then blamed her for not doing so, saying it then prompted him to resign after 21 years on the ITV show.

Schofield, who made a TV comeback on Channel 5’s Cast Away last week, had asked her for a public statement of support, such as a statement or a photo together, in the hope it would counter claims they were feuding.

After he sent the WhatsApp, Ms Willoughby reportedly replied saying she was in the dark about what was happening.

But friends of Schofield say he was so upset he reported Ms Willoughby to two senior ITV bosses. MailOnline has contacted ITV for comment.

A source told The Mirror: ‘Phillip considered her a friend, his TV sister as he called her, and always supported her, even advising her to go into the jungle. Her lack of public support was a low blow in his eyes.”

Schofield and his management were also said to be highly suspicious of her PR team and unhappy that they did not correct ‘false, runaway stories’.

Another factor in their feud is said to be that Mrs Willoughby was not aware of the full details of his pedophile brother Timothy’s crimes.

Although she and ITV were aware of an impending lawsuit last March, it is believed Schofield did not tell her the full extent of it.

A show business insider said: ‘You can see what Phil is doing, he’s angry and he’s taking his moment in the spotlight and slinging more mud while people are interested in him.

‘Phil’s career ended because he lied. He resigned from ITV when he lied about an affair with a much younger colleague. To say this is Holly’s fault is just ridiculous. Talk about the woman’s fault.’

Friends of Ms Willoughby insist she was completely vindicated for her row with Schofield after it emerged he had lied about his relationship with a younger colleague.

Ms Willoughby said last year that he had been dishonest with her about the affair, as he had been with ITV, his agent YMU and his family. He also lied to the Mail about it and admitted the truth in a statement to us last May.

“Phil is a self-confessed and proven liar so the things he says should be taken with a pinch of salt,” a source said: “He lied to his colleagues, his employers and the media, let’s not forget that.”

After rumors they had fallen out last May, Schofield left Mrs Willoughby devastated when he made a public statement to discuss their friendship.

He said: “The last few weeks have not been easy for either of us. As I’ve said before, Holly is my rock.

‘We are the best of friends – as always she is an incredible support on screen, behind the scenes and on the phone.

‘Holly has always been there for me, through thick and thin. And I’ve been there for her.’

Friends of Ms Willoughby said at the time she was ‘blindsided’ by his outburst.

Schofield withdrew from This Morning days later on May 20.

He said in a statement: ‘I understand that ITV has decided that the current situation cannot continue, and I want to do what I can to protect the show I love.

‘So I have agreed to step down from This Morning with immediate effect in the hope that the show can have a bright future.’

While he stepped down from This Morning, he would host the Soap Awards for ITV a week later and the network’s bosses had given him a new prime time show.

He later quit after admitting an affair with his colleague.

Elsewhere, the identities of Phil’s ‘three s**ts’ are said to have been revealed as Holly and his former ITV bosses Martin Frizell and Emma Gormley.

During Phil’s comeback show Cast Away, which aired on Channel 5 last week, the TV star recorded focuses on those ‘who betrayed him 16 months ago when he quit ITV’s This Morning.

In the programme, Schofield appears to blame his dramatic fall from grace on a trio of his former ITV colleagues, saying: ‘I think there’s only three s**ts [of showbiz].’

He pointed out that one was a ‘coward who never stood up at Queuegate’, while another ‘is a coward because she never stood up when I was being abused’.

He claimed the third is “just brand-centric,” adding, “Not what you expect, not what you think you get.”

The sun have now reported that Phil believes Holly and their This Morning boss Martin staged an ‘organized coup’ to get him sacked following the jailing of his pedophile brother Timothy.

Sources claim Phil now calls his once close friend Holly ‘the witch’ and reportedly uses a witch emoji when discussing her with friends.

A friend said: ‘Phil believes Holly, Martin and Emma were the reason he was banned from ITV and he thinks they treated him unfairly.

The insiders also claim that Phil begged Martin not to send him and Holly to the Queen’s coffin for their ITV show, which backfired with the infamous ‘queue-gate’ response.

Representatives for Holly declined to comment when contacted by MailOnline for comment. ITV has been contacted for comment.

Today it is also claimed that Holly ‘knew’ about Schofield’s pedophile brother in the run-up to his trial.

It is understood Holly ‘supported’ her former colleague ahead of the trial, despite reports she was blindsided by his brother Timothy’s crimes.

Phillip’s 54-year-old brother was convicted in April 2023 of 11 sex offenses involving a child between October 2016 and October 2019, including two for sexual activity with a child.

The mirror claims Phillip informed Holly a month after Timothy’s arrest in 2021 and Holly was even praised for being “really supportive of what he was going through.”

A friend told the publication: ‘There is a story – uncorrected by Holly’s team – that she was blindsided by news of his brother’s trial and furious with him for keeping her in the dark about it.

“But that story couldn’t be further from the truth.”

But when things got ‘bad for her brand’ it became clear that Holly quickly turned her back on the former This Morning star when Timothy went on trial in May.

A source told MailOnline that Holly is annoyed by these claims and insisted there is not an iota of truth to them.

The sun reported that Holly “began to put up a wall between them because she knew it could look bad for her name.”

A friend told the publication: ‘Phil feels fired because of the bad press surrounding his brother. Everyone knew Tim, including Holly.

‘They had a backstage make-up room called ‘The Sanctuary’ on This Morning, where Phil first gathered trusted friends, including Holly, and tearfully told them about his brother. Holly held his hand and was super nice.

“But Phil feels like she publicly distanced herself from it because it was bad for her brand. But she supported Phil and was disgusted by what his brother had done.”

Holly’s representatives declined to comment when contacted by MailOnline.