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Privacy Notice Phillip Schofield was moved to tears on his desert island TV show as he opened up about how he nearly ended his life after leaving This Morning. The former ITV presenter reflected on the “dark” period in his life and credited his daughters for helping him “take a step back from the edge”. He’s set to return to our screens on Channel 5 next week. Holding back tears, he shared: “In the last 18 months it got as dark as it is possible to get.” “A year ago I got so so close. I had everything in place, everything was set up and everything was ready. It was Molly that was looking after me, Molly and Ruby (daughters) both looking after me at the time, and Molly said do you imagine what this would do to us if you actually managed to pull this off”, he confessed.
Phillip Schofield reflected on how “dark” his life became and how his daughters helped him “take a step back from the edge” as he returns to television
(Image: PA)
She went on to say: “Can you imagine what would happen and can you imagine what it would do to me if you did this on my watch?” “And that was enough just to take a step back from the edge,” Phil explained. “And I could have been hospitalised, I had the option to be hospitalised but I just thought that is going to get out so I raced to the family home,” reports the Mirror. Phil, 62, opened up about his coming out experience, which wasn’t the liberating moment some might expect. He shared: “I’m very proud of what I did, and I know that coming out for many people is liberating…but for me doing it later in life, at the moment it’s just given me more anguish than joy because I am fully aware of the damage that it leaves.” He also touched on the emotional toll it took on him, revealing he has spent a “chunk of his older life” feeling sad. His daughter Molly spoke about the impact on the family, saying: “When my dad came out it was very hard for me. It was very hard for the entire family. Mainly my mum, of course, everything was turned upside down. But we talked through it and it got easier.”
The show comes 16 months after Phil’s departure from This Morning
(Image: ITV)
The star also hinted he wouldn’t be up for future gigs with ITV, referring to the buzz about participating in I’m A Celebrity and explaining: “Although my best mates host it, there are some channels you just won’t work for. There are some people you won’t work for.” Episode one kicks off with Phillip pondering over the prospect of isolation on a desert island and candidly admits: “I think there’d be an awful lot of people that hope I never come back.” As the programme explores his journey through children’s TV, treading the boards in theatre, and hosting This Morning with Holly Willoughby, he muses whether the “ultimate isolation can finally set me free” or if he’ll be “consumed by my inner demons”. He said that working on This Morning has been a “joy” and a “privilege”, acknowledging his fortune over a lengthy four-decade stint on television, which drew to a close in 2023.
Phillip Schofield on an island off the coast of Madagascar, on Channel 5’s Cast Away
Detailing the unexpected career halt, he shared: “When it came to a sudden very abrupt end, you know one minute you’re there and then the next minute you’re gone, you know what it feels like to be cancelled,” and likened it to “It’s like the biggest grenade going off in your life, and you know you let people down, you’ve let yourself down, and it was unwise and (an) unprofessional thing to do, I will be forever sorry, I screwed up, I made a mistake, and I hurt the people around me.” Phillip Schofield: Cast Away begins airs at 9pm on Monday on Channel 5, and will continue on Tuesday and Wednesday at the same time. If you’ve been affected by any of the issues in this story you can contact Samaritans in the UK and Ireland on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie.Story SavedYou can find this story in My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.Follow OK! MagazineFacebookTwitterCommentMore OnHolly WilloughbyPhillip SchofieldThis Morning
