Phillip Schofield’s ‘patronage’ assisted lover’s ITV career, review finds

Phillip Schofield’s “patronage” of a younger male colleague he was having an affair with clearly assisted the man’s early career at ITV before the young man then “made his way on his own”, an independent KC-led investigation into the scandal has found.

The This Morning presenter quit after admitting that he had lied about an “unwise, but not illegal” affair, amid allegations that ITV bosses had turned a blind eye to the relationship.

On Thursday, Jane Mulcahy KC told the broadcaster it should set clear guidelines for “talent” to ensure “good behaviours are observed even by those who are household names”.

ITV launched the independent review by Mulcahy in June to examine how the company had dealt with rumours relating to the relationship between Schofield and a member of the This Morning production team, complaints by This Morning staff and whether ITV’s response was adequate.

Mulcahy found that ITV had “made considerable efforts to determine the truth about an alleged relationship”, after a story was published in the Sun in early December 2019, but “in the face of the denials of the individuals involved, ITV was unable to uncover the relevant evidence until [Schofield’s] admission in late May 2023”.

The senior management of ITV and the senior team of This Morning did not know the nature of the relationship until his statement, said Mulcahy, adding that only one former junior employee had told her they had knowledge of the affair but they had not reported it.

Schofield stepped down in May, having presented This Morning for 21 years, after admitting to lying about an affair with the colleague while married to his wife of 30 years, Stephanie Lowe. He had announced he was gay in February 2020.

News of the affair and Schofield’s resignation sent shockwaves through the media and in June, ITV’s chief executive, Carolyn McCall, was questioned by MPs on the House of Commons culture, media and sport committee about the episode and the wider culture at the broadcaster.

She was asked about allegations by former presenters such as Piers Morgan and Eamonn Holmes that Schofield’s relationship had been known about throughout by the broadcaster but no action had been taken.

Andy Cosslett, ITV plc’s chair, welcomed the findings and recommendations of the review.

He said: “We are completely committed to creating an environment where everyone is treated with respect and feels able to give of their best.

“Our promise to those we work with is that where a complaint is made, or serious concerns raised, we will always investigate and if we find that something inappropriate has happened, we will take action.

“We will continue to develop our efforts to give junior colleagues the confidence to speak up if they have something to raise.”