Susanna Reid worked next door to Phillip Schofield for years (Picture: ITV/PA)
Good Morning Britain’s Susanna Reid had a rather curt response when quizzed on Phillip Schofield’s recent return to screens.
Schofield, 62, famously made a comeback last month with Cast Away, his three-part Channel 5 series that followed his 10-day stay on a remote island in Madagascar.
The ex-This Morning star had to fend for himself, living completely alone, scavenging for food, and even operating his own camera equipment.
During his stay, Schofield opened up about his 2023 scandal, having confessed to lying about an ‘unwise but not illegal’ affair with a much younger male runner, resulting in his departure from ITV after decades.
Reid, 53, has been hosting GMB since 2014, having overlapped with Schofield many a time, as he spent 21 years at the helm of This Morning alongside Fern Britton, 67, and later, Holly Willoughby, 43.
Now, however, they do not have any contact.
The Good Morning Britain presenter does not have a friendship with Schofield (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock)
He hosted This Morning for over 20 years (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock)
In a new interview, Reid was asked her opinion on Schofield’s attempted TV career revival.
She told The Times rather bluntly: ‘I didn’t watch it, and I don’t know him.’
Earlier this year, Reid shared her views on Willoughby also quitting This Morning.
The Dancing On Ice host briefly returned to screens following Schofield’s firing but resigned shortly after herself following an alleged plot to kidnap her.
Willoughby, who presented on the daytime show for 14 years, expressed the need to prioritise the safety of both herself and her family, with Gavin Plumb later handed a life sentence for plotting to kidnap, rape, and murder Willoughby. He denied the charges.
Speaking to Woman & Home for its February issue, Reid said: ‘Holly has made her decision, and who can blame her?
Schofield recently returned to screens in Cast Away (Picture: Channel 5)
He has no plans to continue his career in broadcasting (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
‘It was a very challenging thing to have to handle and deal with.’
The broadcaster added: ‘I used to see her very occasionally, as even though they’re in the studio next door, they’re on at a different time.
‘Over the past year, the times I’ve seen her she’s been her typical, normal, smiling, bright, happy, strong self.’
‘She’s an exceptional, clever, funny, brilliant presenter,’ she praised.
Meanwhile, Schofield has claimed he does not see a future for himself in television.
Speaking on Cast Away, the disgraced star, whose mother died just weeks ago, looked ahead, saying he has no plans to return to presenting anytime soon.
Holly Willoughby left This Morning to prioritise her family’s safety after a kidnapping plot against her (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock)
Schofield issued a blunt message after Cast Away aired, hitting out at haters (Picture: Instagram)
‘Now, I’m not saying I’m done but, you know, never in a million years will I go back to daytime TV. I’ve lived a hundred TV lives,’ he told the cameras.
Schofield also made it clear what his feelings are towards ITV after their working relationship came to an abrupt end.
The once-revered broadcaster claimed he was ‘fired for someone else’s crime’, referring to his paedophile brother.
Last May, Timothy Schofield was sentenced to 12 years in prison for child abuse.
Schofield alleged that the day before the sentencing, his agent called him to say: ‘I’m afraid you’ve been let go from This Morning. That’s it, it’s done. You’re not going back on Monday.’
He continued: ‘I’d just been fired because of him, because I was becoming more of a story than the programme. It was better for the show, better for the channel.
Schofield and Willoughby no longer have a friendship (Picture: James Veysey/Shutterstock)
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‘And I agreed to say I’d resigned because it would be neater for everybody.’
Schofield declared that he ‘was fired for the bad publicity for someone else’s crime’, having issued a lengthy statement at the time of his departure from the channel, professing his love for the job while acknowledging that the situation ‘couldn’t go on’.
An ITV spokesperson also said at the time: ‘We are deeply disappointed by the admissions of deceit made tonight by Phillip Schofield.
‘The relationships we have with those we work with are based on trust. Phillip made assurances to us which he now acknowledges were untrue and we feel badly let down.
‘We accept his resignation from ITV and therefore can confirm that he will not be appearing on ITV as had previously been stated.’
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