Carol Vorderman has revealed who she thinks will replace Phillip Schofield on This Morning.
Television presenter Phillip, 61, announced his departure from the ITV program last Saturday before sensationally confessing to the Mail on Friday that he had had an affair with a young male colleague on the show.
Phillip has now resigned from ITV and will not be presenting his last remaining TV appointment, the British Soap Awards, and has been dropped ‘with immediate effect’ by his agents at YMU.
The broadcaster left This Morning amid reports of a feud between him and his former co-host Holly Willoughby, 42, with Holly taking two weeks off from the daytime show before returning with other members of the ITV family on June 5.
And during an appearance on the BBC’s Have I Got News for You on Friday, Carol, 62, hinted who would permanently replace Phillip alongside Holly, with the star claiming it would be Alison Hammond.
Prediction: Carol Vorderman claimed that Alison Hammond would permanently replace Phillip Schofield on This Morning during an appearance on Have I Got News For You on Friday (Carol pictured on the show)
Statement: TV presenter Phillip quit the ITV program last Saturday before sensationally confessing to the Mail on Friday that he had had an affair with a young male colleague
Former Countdown regular Carol appears on This Morning every other Friday and discusses various topics.
When her Have I Got News For You team captain Ian Hislop suggested she could replace Phillip, Carol said, “No! Probably Holly and Alison, I thought.’
Host Steph McGovern asked Carol, “Is that where your money is?” she replied, “That’s where I’d put my money.”
Alison currently hosts the show every Friday alongside Dermot O’Leary.
Phillip stepped down last weekend after more than 20 years on the air, confirming the affair in a statement to the Mail on Friday.
He has resigned from ITV and will not present the British Soap Awards and has been dropped ‘with immediate effect’ by his agents at YMU.
In a fawning statement, the former ITV presenter said: “I am making this statement through the Daily Mail, to whom I have already personally apologized for being misled, through my lawyer who I have also misled, about a story [sic] that they wanted to write about me a few days ago.
“The first thing I want to say is, I am deeply sorry that I lied to them and to many others about a relationship I had with someone who worked on This Morning.
Regular: While Alison currently hosts the show every Friday alongside Dermot O’Leary, Carol says Alison will be a regular on the show’s bench alongside Holly Willoughby
On air: Former Countdown regular Carol appears on This Morning every other Friday and discusses various topics (Carol and Gyles Brandreth are featured on the show this month)
“I did have a consensual on and off relationship with a younger male colleague at This Morning.
Contrary to speculation, while I met the man when he was a teenager and was asked to help him get on television, it wasn’t until after he started working on the show that it became more than just a friendship.
That relationship was ill-advised, but not illegal. It’s over now…
“I am painfully aware that I have lied to my employers at ITV, to my colleagues and friends, to my agents, to the media and therefore to the public and especially my family. I am very sorry, just like that I have been unfaithful to my wife…
“I resign from ITV with immediate effect and express my immense gratitude to them for all the wonderful opportunities they have given me.
“I will reflect on my very poor judgment in both participating in the relationship and then lying about it.”
An ITV spokesperson said on Friday night: ‘We are deeply disappointed by Phillip Schofield’s admissions of cheating tonight.
“The relationships we have with those we work with are based on trust. Philip gave us assurances which he now admits were untrue and we feel very let down.
On hiatus: Holly is currently taking two weeks off from This Morning before returning with other members of the ITV family on 5th June (Phillip and Holly seen together on his final episode of This Morning on Thursday 18th May 2023)
“We accept his resignation from ITV and can therefore confirm that he will not appear on ITV as previously stated.”
Phillip’s extraordinary statement marks the end of weeks of increasingly fevered speculation in both the TV industry and the wider country about the future of his career following his sudden departure from This Morning bank earlier this month.
His departure from ITV apparently sets plans for the ‘prime time’ show which was reportedly offered to him by the network as consolation for leaving This Morning after more than 20 years on the show.
Next week he was due to present the prestigious British Soap Awards – a role he has held since 2006. His statement confirms that he will no longer do so.