ITV bosses ‘fear Holly Willoughby could leave This Morning’ after presenter thought Queuegate backlash was ‘mishandled’
ITV bosses reportedly fear Holly Willoughby “could leave This Morning” after the presenter thought “the Queuegate backlash was ‘mishandled'”.
The 42-year-old TV personality and her co-host Philip Schofield came under fire last year when they were accused of having ‘VIP access’ to present ‘beyond the Queen lying in state’, omitting the tail, a claim that the stars and ITV have both denied.
According to a new report, Holly was “devastated” by the public reception and the station’s “decision to go silent.”
As a result Mirror claims ITV lacks the ‘confidence’ it has previously had with Holly’s contract, which expires in December.
The broadcaster is said to be working on a ‘bumper package’ for the presenter to keep her on the channel.
Good Lord: ITV bosses reportedly fear Holly Willoughby ‘could leave This Morning’ after presenter thought ‘Queuegate backlash was ‘mishandled’
A source told the publication: “The Queuegate backlash was absolutely devastating for Holly, but what made matters worse was the feeling that it was mishandled.”
“ITV’s decision to remain silent before finally issuing a statement was frustrating as it appeared they were closing the gate after the horse had run away.
“The bosses know that last year was incredibly difficult for her, and as such, they are not approaching her contract negotiations with the same confidence as before.”
MailOnline has contacted ITV representatives and Holly Willoughby for comment.
In September, This Morning bosses denied the show’s hosts Holly and Phillip ‘VIP access’ and paraded ‘past the Lying Queen’ while filming a segment for the show at Westminster Hall in London.
The presenters showed somber figures as they dressed in black and visited the queen’s coffin to film the next episode which would air the day after the late monarch’s state funeral.
With reports that the five-mile-long queue had been closed for six hours, increasing wait times to “at least 14 hours”, the TV duo were said to have joined a separate queue and were taken to a press gallery.
ITV bosses posted a statement on Instagram that denied the couple received any special treatment: ‘Hello everyone, we’d like to clarify something. We asked Phillip and Holly to be part of a movie for this Tuesday show,” she read.
Cola: According to a new report, Holly was ‘devastated’ by the public reception and the broadcaster’s ‘decision to remain silent’
“They did not skip the line, have VIP access or parade in front of the queen lying in state, but were there in a professional capacity as part of the world’s media to report on the event.”
An ITV spokesperson added in a statement to MailOnline: ‘I had press accreditation this morning and, like other media outlets, Phillip and Holly were escorted to work from the press gallery by government staff.
They did not parade past the Queen’s coffin. They were there along with a number of other national broadcasters and news outlets for an article that will air on Tuesday’s show. Any accusation of inappropriate behavior is categorically false.
A source told MailOnline: “They were unable to pay their respects to the Queen in the same way as members of the public queuing, but did film in a section reserved for the press.”
Statement: They filmed a segment for the show at Westminster Hall in London and reports surfaced that they had reduced queues and received special treatment.