Kerry Katona has spoken out against Phillip Schofield‘s on-camera BBC interview, stating she was ‘left suicidal’ by This Morning.
The Atomic Kitten singer previously attacked ITV for being ‘toxic’ and having a ‘lack of’ aftercare, as well as Schofield for being ‘belittling’ when she broke her silence over his infidelity scandal.
The 61-year-old former Dancing On Ice host resigned from the network earlier this week with ‘immediate effect’ after admitting to a ‘unwise but not criminal’ flirtation with a young runner.
Schofield, who has two kids with his wife Stephanie Lowe, has given two interviews about the affair since then, telling the BBC’s Amol Rajan on Friday: ‘I wouldn’t be here if my daughters hadn’t been there last week,’ she says.
He added: ‘I think I understand how Caroline Flack felt.’
Love Island anchor Flack was discovered dead in February 2020 at the age of 40, and a coroner later decided she committed herself after discovering that prosecutors planned to bring an assault allegation against her partner Lewis Burton.
Posting a clip of the segment of Schofield’s interview during which he discussed the support of his daughters who ‘won’t let me out of their sight’, Katona wrote: ‘This is exactly how I felt after the interview he did with me! If I didn’t have my children I’d of killed myself #fact! Things need to change drastically at ITV!!
She continued: ‘Nobody reach out to me after the interview or asked me what bipolar was, or what medication I was on.!’
‘4 individuals from Love Island have killed themselves, including Caroline Flack!’ Katona said, referring to the suicides of previous Love Island stars Flack, Sophie Gradon, and Mike Thalassitis.
‘To EVERYONE who’s is involved with this a really hope that they are ALL getting the right support!!!’
ITV has duty of care measures in place for Islanders, who must go through a rigorous pre-filming psychiatric and physical evaluation and divulge any relevant medical history.
Mental health specialists assist the cast throughout the programme, and the senior crew on the ground has undergone training in mental health first aid.
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Phillip Schofield‘s tell-all interview: The key points
Phillip Schofield spilled the beans in interviews with The Sun and the BBC after admitting to an affair with a This Morning runner. Here’s what he had to say:
‘I did not groom him’
Schofield says he is not a groomer, claiming that while he met the former colleague as a youngster, their contacts were benign until the runner was approximately 20/21 years old.
He said that because they were “mates,” it never seemed like a “abuse of power.”
The affair began in 2017
He has said that the affair began after a ‘consensual moment’ in his dressing room.
‘It was not a love affair, it was not a relationship, we were not boyfriends; we were mates,’ he insisted. ‘It wasn’t feelings (I was getting), it was more like mates: excitement.’
His wife is ‘very, very angry’
Schofield’s romance occurred when he was married to Stephanie Lowe, with whom he had two kids.
On the moment he told his wife, he said: ‘She got off a plane and I phoned her up and texted saying, “I need to talk to you”. She called back and I told her. She was very, very angry.’
Schofield still wears his wedding band, but he and Stephanie are ‘separated,’ he says.
His daughters saved his life
Schofield admitted to feeling suicidal in the aftermath of his affair and the’relentless’ media scrutiny.
His two daughters – Molly, 29, and Ruby, 27 – have been ‘afraid’ to leave his side and warned him: ‘Don’t you dare do this on our watch.’
‘If it hadn’t been for my girls last week, I wouldn’t be here.’
He has apologised to Holly Willoughby
Schofield has apologised to his former co-presenter Holly Willoughby following suspicions of a spat between the two and after she claimed Schofield lied to her about their affair.
He said: ‘I’ve lost my best friend. I let her down (Holly). I let that entire show down. I let the viewers down.
‘Holly did not know (about the romance). And she was one of the first texts that I sent, to say, “I am so, so sorry that I lied to you”.’
He will ‘die sorry’ to the runner he had the affair with
‘I have massive guilt, and regret. I’ve made a mistake, I’ve had an affair at work. I think my greatest apology must go to him. It has brought the greatest misery into his totally innocent life, his totally innocent family, his totally innocent friends.
‘It has brought the greatest grief to them.’
For the sake of his privacy, the coworker has not been mentioned in the press.
No pay-offs
Schofield rejected reports that the runner received hush money from ITV, claiming that the promotion was given to him not to’move him on’ but because of his own abilities.
He also stated that the young man had not signed an NDA that barred him from speaking out.
Comparing age gap backlash to ‘homophobia’
‘So yeah, there’s a difference. It’s accepted by Leonardo DiCaprio, it’s not accepted if it’s in the gay world,’ he said of age differences.
‘Attraction is attraction. It’s no different in the gay world as it is in the heterosexual world or in the lesbian world. There shouldn’t be a difference. This is where homophobia comes in.’
Eamonn Holmes is an ‘angry’ man
Schofield rejected reports that the runner received hush money from ITV, claiming that the promotion was given to him not to’move him on’ but because of his own abilities.
He also stated that the young man had not signed an NDA that barred him from speaking out.
Doesn’t think he’ll work in TV again
Schofield admitted that talking about TV in the past tense ‘breaks [his] heart,’ but he doesn’t see a path back.
‘I do not think I will be able to walk down a street ever again. It is like everybody knows.
‘I’ve lost everything. It’s all gone,’ he said frankly.
‘Telly was my safe space, the one thing I loved. Now I don’t know if I will ever work on telly again.’
The welfare team will stay in touch for at least 14 months, and islanders will attend at least eight therapy sessions, with further assistance offered as needed.
Katona earlier stated on This Morning in 2018 that her interview ‘destroyed her career.’
‘I think for so long the mental health stigma, it’s still a taboo really. That was down to my pure medication.
‘I’ll admit I’ve done drugs in the past, I’ve done the drink, I’ve done all that.’
‘But that was my bipolar medication and to this day I’m still trying to get TV companies, producers to try and trust in me again because of my mental health illness.’
ITV will investigate the circumstances surrounding Schofield’s departure after he resigned from the channel after lying about his affair to colleagues and managers.
The network has appointed a barrister to conduct an external investigation of the facts, stating that they take the situation ‘very seriously’ in the wake of suspicions of a ‘cover-up’ of Schofield’s misconduct.
Editor Martin Frizell later stated that the investigation’s results will be made public.