There were worries that This Morning may be canceled because of the controversy surrounding Phillip Schofield’s affair with a much younger coworker.
And those worries became even more after Holly Willoughby left on vacation earlier this month without bidding her fans farewell. However, a source close to the 42-year-old has said that, rather than leaving, the presenter is getting ready to sign a lucrative new deal, which will help save the program.
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According to the source, she will return to the show she has hosted for 14 years as its star in September. Following Schofield’s departure two months ago, even This Morning’s behind-the-scenes team believed that Willoughby was “quietly quitting.”
After she skipped ITV’s summer party last week and failed to inform viewers of This Morning that she was going on vacation, these suspicions deepened. It was in sharp contrast to last year when Willoughby and Schofield signed off for the summer with much hoopla. Willoughby, who also missed a show last month after losing her voice after a drunken excursion to Glastonbury, did so then.
Her return will correspond with the findings of ITV’s independent investigation into the toxic workplace environment that has existed on the program.
Willoughby’s payment for hosting the show four days a week, which is currently £700,000, is probably going to increase.
She has wanted to co-host the program with Alison Hammond for a number of months. Willoughby has hosted This Morning with Dermot O’Leary, Josie Gibson, and Craig Doyle since Schofield left.
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After Schofield, 61, admitted to lying to this newspaper about an affair he had with a much younger runner on the show several years ago, ITV executives have come under pressure to revamp This Morning. He left the network after nearly three decades as a result of it.
