Stony-faced Phillip Schofield takes puppy for a walk in London as his This Morning successors make their debut
FORMER This Morning host Phillip Schofield was out with a pout as his TV successors made their debut.
Phillip, 61, wore a £2,100 coat to walk his puppy in West London on Monday as Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard hit daytime screens.
It comes five months after the broadcaster quit the spotlight after admitting to an affair with a young runner on the show.
Whilst met by a warm reception online, Cat and Ben’s arrival did not immediately spark a ratings revival for This Morning.
Viewers peaked at 966,000, whilst rival show Morning Live on the BBC attracted 1.3million.
At best, 2.7million tuned in under Holly Willoughby and Schofield.
READ MORE ON SCHOFIELD
Last month it was revealed Schofield paid his ex-lover a six-figure sum in a deal.
The arrangement mutually gags both from ever talking about their relationship.
The presenter’s former colleague, 34 years his junior, signed a non-disclosure agreement as part of the accord reached.
It prevents him from talking about the scandal that brought the presenter’s decades-long TV career to an ignominious end last year.
Schofield, 61, has been keeping a low profile since admitting to the affair and lying to his ITV employers in an extraordinary mea culpa last May.
A representative for Schofield confirmed a deal was signed last year, including payment to compensate the man for losses suffered, the Mail on Sunday reported.
The man was just 15 when he met Schofield, who helped him land a job as a runner on This Morning at the age of 19.
A romantic relationship between the pair began when the man was 20, after which he moved to another ITV daytime show, Loose Women.
He later left the channel with a separate payout.
Last night, a source said the payout was part of an agreement that also included an NDA preventing both men from talking about the scandal.
