Phillip Schofield’s last This Morning show with Holly Willoughby on ITV

Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield watched awkwardly as a robot introduced their very last show together.

The duo’s reign as the star couple of the ITV show ended today when Phil stepped down after 21 years.

The TV presenter, 61, bowed down after reports of a feud with his co-presenter and former best friend, saying the channel has ‘decided that the current situation cannot continue’.

For his final appearance on Thursday, May 18, the introductory segment was taken over by a robot – leading Twitter users to ask if the machine was “Phil’s replacement.”

The animatronic host – named Ameca – described This Morning as ‘the UK’s number one breakfast show’.

The light-hearted skit sparked a barrage of jokes from viewers, with one tweeting, “Phil’s replacement revealed at the start of the show – a robot! You couldn’t make it up…”

A second wrote, “The robot would prefer these two robot humans presenting, though all three are equally pre-programmable.”

Body language expert Judi James described the robot as a “welcome icebreaker” for the presenting duo.

“After their awkward, toe-curling body language moments this week, it was the best joke to have Holly and Phil replaced by a robot this morning,” she told MailOnline on Thursday.

It was hilariously obvious that the robot’s surreal-realistic body language was a masterclass of measured, authentic calm confidence juxtaposed with the tension of the desk next door.

The robot provided an icebreaker for Holly and Phil, with Phil making a terrifying face and Holly even screaming and trying to scramble across the desk to get away from it.

“The robot even did a tie to the viewers by tapping the side of its nose in a stealthy gesture.”

ITV bosses were ‘bewildered’ when they learned that viewership had fallen by an almost unprecedented 20 per cent from 894,000 last week to 724,000 for Monday’s episode.

But viewing figures for Tuesday averaged 663,000, up from 622,730 for the same day last week. Audiences peaked at 742,000 and 743,000 consecutively.

The last show was shrouded in shame for Holly and Phil back then the Deputy Prime Minister used off-screen reports of their feud as fuel for an attack on Labor in the Commons.

Oliver Dowden, who replaces Rishi Sunak on the Prime Minister’s questions, described Opposition Leader Sir Keir Starmer and his deputy Angela Rayner as ‘the Phil and Holly of British politics’.

Explaining his statement, Dowden said, “All dear dovey on the surface, they turn it on for the cameras, but once they’re off it’s a different story.” They’re flying at each other’s throats.’ An ITV insider described the MP’s comments as a ‘cheap opportunity’.

In the embarrassing episode, there was another crisis meeting at the broadcaster, with a source saying, “Enough is enough.”

They added: ‘You know things get really serious when they’re mentioned in the House of Commons.

This is no longer just a bit of beef on Twitter.

“Those upstairs know to act—they just don’t know what to do.”

Another ITV insider described the situation between the two presenters at the time as a ‘runaway train that cannot be stopped’.

The fallout began in September when the couple faced criticism for avoiding the queue for the Queen in state.

Analyzing Thursday’s episode, Ms. James said Phil looked “more relaxed” than he had on the previous two shows.

She told MailOnline, “His stance was all casual angles, from the tilted head and shoulders to the bent knee and asymmetrical smile, and his hands looked like they were casually hanging out of his pockets rather than being tucked there.”

In contrast, Holly’s pose seemed straight-forward, with her torso erect and her arms straight at her sides.

She looked horrified by Phil’s sudden, playful “Tell me all about it!”, which was accompanied by a dramatic circular motion of the head and lifting of the eyebrows as he twisted his neck at a 45-degree angle to lean back. to look. staring into her wide-open eyes.

Holly’s “I had a lovely day yesterday” got another flattering remark from Phil that seemed exaggerated enough to indicate the tiniest bit of sarcasm. “You looked beautiful,” came with a raised chin and closed eyes.

Mrs. James noticed another change in the couple’s body language when Holly announced she was leaving early for the palace.

Holly folded her hands in a barrier gesture here, but her retracted king smile suggested self-pride as Phil threw a rather forced grin in her direction.

“It’s fine,” he said to the camera, the corners of his mouth curled down.

The body language expert said the duo’s behavior during a part of the show about lawn care — which spawned several suggestive jokes — was particularly noteworthy.

“As Holly bent down to watch the music video from the garden, she nudged Phil quite hard with her elbow as if she was sharing a joke or inviting him to mirror her,” she said.

“Did they surrender to a nudge fight? If so, that could point to two options: either seeing a little scuffle, or a moment of real shared private fun between the couple.”

In a statement released Saturday, Phil said: ‘I’ve always taken pride in writing fascinating stories on This Morning. But recently, This Morning itself has become the story.

“During my career in TV – including the very difficult past few days – I have always tried my best to be honorable and kind.

“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’ve agreed to step down from This Morning effective immediately, in hopes that the show has a bright future.

“I want to thank everyone who has supported me – especially the wonderful viewers of This Morning – and I’ll see you all next month at the Soap Awards.”

Holly Willoughby said: ‘It’s been over 13 amazing years presenting This Morning with Phil and I’d like to take this opportunity to thank him for all his knowledge, his experience and his humour. The bank won’t feel the same without him.’

Kevin Lygo, ITV’s Managing Director, Media and Entertainment said: ‘Phillip is without a doubt one of the best broadcasters of his generation and we thank him for his two decades of absolutely amazing television on the This Morning bank.

“This Morning was created by one of television’s best and most diligent teams, producing over 12 hours of live television every week.”

“We look forward to continuing our relationship with Phillip, starting with the British Soap Awards in June and a brand new peak time series coming up.”

Holly uploaded a separate statement to her Instagram account saying: ‘Hello everyone… it’s been over 13 amazing years presenting This Morning with Phil and I’d like to take this opportunity to thank fim for all his knowledge , his experience and his humour. The bank won’t feel the same without him.’

Holly will return to This Morning on Monday 5th June after taking an early half break from Monday 22nd May.