PHILLIP Schofield’s “three s**ts” are today revealed as his former co-host Holly Willoughby and old ITV bosses Martin Frizell and Emma Gormley.

The ex-presenter lashed out at an unnamed trio in his television comeback last week on Channel 5’s Cast Away.

Your info will be used in accordance with our Privacy Policy

Phil Schofield calls former This Morning co-host Holly Willoughby ‘the witch’ following their bitter fall-out over his telly axingCredit: Rex

Phil revealed old ITV bosses Martin Frizell staged an ‘organised coup’ to get him sackedCredit: Louis Wood

Pals say he also accuses Emma Gormley, ITV’s managing director of daytime, of treating him ‘unfairly’ over his departure in May 2023Credit: ITV
Phil’s friends now want to set the record straight on what he could not say on air — including outing the three people he blames for ending his television career.

They say he believes Holly and their This Morning boss Martin staged an “organised coup” to get him sacked after the jailing of his paedophile brother Timothy.

Phil now brands Holly — once one of his closest friends — as “the witch” who he accused directly of “bringing me down”.

He even uses a hatted hag’s emoji when discussing her with pals if she comes up.

Pals say he also accuses Emma, ITV’s managing director of daytime, of treating him “unfairly” over his departure in May 2023.

A friend said: “Phil’s three s**ts are Holly, Martin and Emma.

“He dislikes Holly so much now he calls her ‘the witch’ when talking about her and sends the emoji to his mates if she comes up.

“Phil believes Holly, Martin and Emma were the reason he was booted from ITV and he thinks they treated him unfairly.

“He messaged Holly and told her, ‘You brought me down.’ He was furious, and still is.”

His pals also claim Phil begged Martin not to send him and Holly to see the Queen’s coffin for This Morning, which backfired with the disastrous “queue-gate” furore.

Those close to Phil, 62, tell The Sun swathes of footage from Cast Away had to be left out as it was deemed too explosive, most notably about Holly, 43.

In the three-parter, Phil claimed he was sacked because of bad publicity around his brother, jailed for 12 years in May last year for sexual offences involving a child.

It was in stark contrast to how his departure played out publicly, with Phil releasing a statement saying he was stepping down after an “unwise but not illegal” affair with a younger show runner.

Phil now believes his fate was sealed when Holly began to distance herself from him for the sake of “her brand”.

Holly has never publicly spoken about Timothy’s crimes but in messages seen after his arrest she told Phil of her shock and said it was “hard to believe”.

A friend said: “Phil feels that he was sacked because of the bad press around his brother. Everyone knew about Tim’s arrest — including Holly.

“They had a backstage make-up room called The Sanctuary at This Morning, where Phil first assembled trusted pals including Holly and told them, tearfully, about his brother. Holly held his hand and was super-kind.

“But Phil feels she distanced herself from it publicly because it was bad for her brand. But she supported Phil and was disgusted by what his brother had done.”

The rift between them spiralled, with Phil later admitting he had lied to Holly about his affair with a younger male colleague.

Phil feels that he was sacked because of the bad press around his brother. Everyone knew about Tim’s arrest — including Holly

A friend

Pals revealed that Phil was hurt when Holly cut him off, especially after the help he had given her with work. One said: “He feels so betrayed by Holly still.

“As far as he’s concerned he made her career at This Morning. And he got her the I’m A Celebrity hosting job by texting his best pal Dec and saying, ‘Holly would be perfect for this’.

“Once, Holly’s husband Dan ­Baldwin even confronted him about giving Holly more airtime on This Morning — which naturally Phil did.

He agreed, formally, to let her have a question and then him — even if she then missed a good follow-up. When he once broke the rule and chipped in she rolled her eyes — that bit was reported at the time as viewers noticed.

“In Phil’s eyes, Holly repaid his kindness by knifing him. He lied to her and apologised, but she dropped him, despite everything they had been through.

“He’ll never get over what he feels is a betrayal.”

Phil didn’t even want to go to Westminster. He foresaw it would backfire and it did. He wanted to watch the procession from the bottom of his drive at home

A friend

In September 2022, Holly and Phil were heavily criticised for apparently jumping the queue to see the late Queen lying in state at Westminster Hall.

However, The Sun can reveal Phil pleaded with This Morning editor Martin to cancel the segment.

In messages two days before filming, he warned him it would have the “wrong tone” and that he wanted to “remain outside”.

Phil later asked Martin to rethink, calling the plan “ill-conceived”.

A friend added: “Phil didn’t even want to go to Westminster. He foresaw it would backfire and it did. He wanted to watch the procession from the bottom of his drive at home.

“They never actually jumped the queue and when they had to read a statement explaining that, it was even more galling for Phil because Holly was given the most lines.

Phil claimed he was sacked because of bad publicity around his brother, jailed for 12 years in May last year for sexual offences involving a childCredit: PA

Phil now believes his fate was sealed when Holly began to distance herself from him for the sake of ‘her brand’Credit: Rex

Phil with his paedophile brother Timothy
“Phil predicted it would be perceived badly and he was right.”

His ITV departure was portrayed as a resignation, with Phil confessing about his affair.

But on Cast Away he said: “I was fired for the bad publicity, for someone else’s crime.”

His anger is evident in messages seen by The Sun between Phil and ITV top boss Kevin Lygo following his exit.

A friend said: “Phil told Kevin in no uncertain terms that he believed Holly and Martin wanted him gone. He texted Kevin and told him he believed his sacking was an ‘organised coup’.”

One pal added: “As for Emma, Phil believes she treated him unfairly.”

On Cast Away, Phil also mentioned people who “threw me under a bus”, with ex-colleague Eamonn Holmes saying after it aired: “I am very proud to have done it.”

The pair have feuded since Eamonn and then-wife Ruth Langsford’s departure from This Morning after 15 years in 2021.

Holly is also said to have clashed with Eamonn — including when they went on air together to interview dad-of-two Phil about coming out as gay in 2020.

A pal said: “Phil knows Eamonn hates him and says it’s because he never texted him to say he was sorry to see him leaving. He thinks Eamonn is petty and bitter — and took great delight in being involved in Phil ‘coming out’.

“Phil recalled how Eamonn made crude jokes about him being gay.

“He also told us Holly was furious with Eamonn that day because he told her that he would ‘take over the interview’ if she became too emotional. Phil said he’d never seen Holly so angry.”