Holly Willoughby has announced the shock news that she will not be returning to This Morning.
Giving up her reported £1m-a-year contract and main presenter role following the departure of Phillip Schofield was a brave but necessary decision for Holly, who cited her family as her number one reason for stepping down.
Although the star is expected to retire for a while following the horrific news of an alleged kidnapping and plot against her, ITV’s golden girl will no doubt be planning a comeback.
But will it be in front of the camera? Twenty years on screen is an impressive milestone for a star who started her career on children’s TV, but after a year from hell it may be time for a new chapter for the Willoughby brand.
Holly has been quietly making moves behind the scenes for years, securing a lucrative life off the This Morning sofa.
New ventures: Holly Willoughby announces shock news she won’t be returning to This Morning, but what’s next for ITV’s golden girl
Quit: Walking away from a reported £1m-a-year contract and main presenter role following the departure of Phillip Schofield was a brave but necessary decision for Holly, who cited her family as the number one reason
While her departure was more sudden than anyone on the show would have hoped, her side projects will ensure that the star power remains steady.
Last month, the star celebrated two years of her lifestyle brand Wilde Moon.
Branding and culture expert Nick Ede believes that Holi will now bring the brand into focus.
“When Holly is feeling calmer I think she will most likely concentrate on her Wilde Moon brand and develop it even more,” he told MailOnline.
‘It’s a lucrative business that brings her a good amount of money and it’s her passion project.’
Launching in 2021, Wilde Moon is Holi’s tribute to Gwyneth Paltrow’s ultra-powerful Goop brand – sending subscribers weekly inspirational newsletters and whipping up £65 candles that will bring ‘Mother Nature’s Magic’ into your home.
Posting a celebratory message on Instagram last month for her ‘wild one’s’ pal, Holly said she ‘I love to share with you all those things that make my heart sing… from day one it was a space that was important to me and over the last 2 years that feeling continues to grow.’
Wilde Moon’s Instagram account has 181,000 followers, and Holly is said to have been inspired to launch the brand after finding a love for spirituality while in Australia to present I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! still in 2018
Passion project: Last month, the star celebrated the two-year anniversary of her lifestyle brand Wilde Moon
Two months before Down Under, Holly hit the headlines when she announced she was stepping away from Truly, the lifestyle brand founded by her friend, Dragon’s Den star Peter Jones, who she was supposed to be the face of.
She announced she was pulling out of a reported £10 million deal just a week before the website was due to launch, later telling Stella magazine she was overwhelmed by juggling too many projects.
‘You can’t have everything. I’ve had the most amazing opportunities this year, but it’s also huge,” she explained.
“It was really something I was very passionate about, but my husband has a very high-pressure job and I have three kids and other projects. My son Harry is really into football and I want to be able to take him there so she can do what he loves,” she said.
“I didn’t want to be in the position of working in the evening and not being able to be with them.” It’s not just about me having my dream and everyone aligning around it, but about putting my family first and making that choice.’
Now, after leaving her daytime role on This Morning, Holly will have more time to devote to her passion project, fitting work in between school runs, which she has long prioritized.
Nick Ede says the nature of the job means Holly won’t have to put herself directly in the limelight, explaining: “It’s not as public-facing, which means there’s less pressure on her and she can use her social media and her name to build a brand.” , not personal appearance.’
Holly shares three children with her TV producer husband Dan Baldwin – Harry, 14, Belle, 12, and Chester, nine and she always prioritized her role as a mother.
Her hours on This Morning made it a dream role for a working mum, allowing her to pick up her children from school and transport them to their evening dates and clubs.
Then there were the school holidays that ITV afforded her, with the star taking three months off every summer to relax at the family villa in Portugal.
Would she be willing to spend that precious family time taking on prime-time TV roles?
Prime time: It is not yet confirmed whether the star will return to host Dancing On Ice in January, the Saturday night show that launched her ITV career
It has not yet been confirmed whether the star will return to host Dancing On Ice in January, the Saturday night show that launched her ITV career as well as her TV partnership with Philip Schofield.
Kevin Ligo, managing director of media and entertainment at ITV, hinted that Holly could return in a statement released on Tuesday night, calling her a “much-loved member of the ITV family” and saying “we look forward to continuing to work with her in the Future’.
Holly won’t have long to decide whether to return to the 2024 series, which has already announced its celebrity cast.
If Holly does return to the big screen, she’s ensured she gets the most money she can from her lucrative contracts.
Three years ago Holly left the showbiz agency she shared with former This Morning co-star Philip, making plans to run it herself.
Holly left IMU, formerly known as James Grant, and has a number of big stars on the books, including ITV superstars Ant and Dec.
She now runs her own company, Rocky Media Ltd, of which she and her husband are the sole directors – Holly owns 80 per cent and Dan the remaining 20 per cent.
The company is reportedly made up of an all-female team.
Family: Holly shares three children with her TV producer husband Dan Baldwin – Harry, 14, Belle, 12, and Chester, nine and has always prioritized her role as a mother
Power couple: Holly runs her own company Rocky Media Ltd, of which she and her husband are sole directors – Holly owns 80 per cent and Dan the remaining 20 per cent
Holly was reportedly horrified by the IMU’s claims that they were entitled to a percentage of her future earnings under a ‘sunset clause’.
Ede suggests now would be the perfect time for Holly to build her own management agency, telling MailOnline: “I can see her developing Rocky Management and taking on more talent, whether up-and-coming or established, and creating a hub with her TV producer husband for talent, brand and content development.’
Dan, who already owns television production company Hungry Bear Media, has also launched a new venture called HB Talent Agencies.
In 2014, he founded the production arm of his brand – Hungry Bear Media together with colleague Juliet Denison and Dragons Den star Peter Jones.
Accounts obtained by MailOnline in 2021 show Hungry Bear Media had around £3.4m in cash at the end of 2020, with at least £1.8m in assets.
Holly has worked on shows with Dan through Hungry Bear Media for years, most recently fronting Freeze The Fear With Wim Hof last spring.
BBC show: Holly has worked on shows with her husband Dan through his production company Hungry Bear Media for years, most recently fronting Freeze The Fear With Wim Hof last spring
The show teamed up with Holly’s Wild Moon spirit as it challenged eight celebrities to face terrifying, chilling challenges designed to push their minds and bodies to the limit.
Freeze The Fear aired on BBC One, marking a significant departure from ITV for the star. Working with Dan’s production company would also give the star much more control over where she could choose her passion projects.
Ede says it’s an exciting future for Holly whose brand remains very much intact.
“Holly is in a very special position where she’s a brand and people buy into that and her lifestyle.”
“She is such a bright light on our screens and other lifestyles that I can see her building her brands to become multi-million dollar businesses with worldwide reach.”