Phillip Schofield’s Cast Away LIVE: Shamed star opens up on This Morning axe as he goes skinny dipping
PHILLIP Schofield has returned to TV, 16 months after he was fired from This Morning over what he called an “unwise, but not illegal” affair.
The 62-year-old, who stopped presenting the ITV daytime show in May 2023 after 21 years, is appearing on the Channel 5 special Cast Away, which follows a celebrity stranded on an island off the coast of Madagascar for 10 days.
During the final episode, Phillip said goodbye to the island but not before opening up about the moment he was sacked from ITV.
Phil said he had "written a list of everyone who was toxic” and burnt it on a fire.
Viewers also watched as the former This Morning star stripped completely naked and jumped in the sea.
You can follow our live blog below for all the latest updates ...
Phil talks abandonment
Phil laments on his downfall and being asked to leave This Morning
He says: "I know what I did and I wish I hadn't.
"But people just went, who I thought were friends - they just went!"
Fishing triumph
An emotional and hungry Phil is overwhelmed after catching his first fish.
He begins to tear up as he talks about how "proud" his father would have been of him to catch the fish.
Phil begins to weep as he realises he will be able to eat now.
Day four
Tonight's Castaway episode kicked off with Phil waking up to Day Four and the aftermath of getting lost in the jungle.
He has revealed "hunger" drove him to desperate measures.
The lack of food is getting to him.
What's set to happen in episode two
Phillip Schofield continues his 10-day stay on the uninhabited tropical island off the coast of Madagascar.
Tonight, he confronts his past as he looks back at his time in TV.
He also finds a sense of freedom in a physical challenge that tests him to the limit.
Snubbing the show - but will Holly tune in tonight?
Holly Willoughby gave Phillip Schofield’s Cast Away a wide berth last night.
His former This Morning co-star instead went to the theatre in London to watch her pal, Tamzin Outhwaite, in the play Abigail’s Party.
Cosying up to Tamzin for a selfie after the curtain went down, she wrote on Instagram: “@glamzin you are simply incredible. If you get the chance, please go and see this.”
‘Coming out as gay brought more anguish than joy’
“Freedom on a plate”. That is how Phillip Schofield described coming out as gay.
However, he says it has also brought him “more anguish than joy”.
His daughter admits it was a tough time but that ultimately, it has brought them closer together.
She has even described Phil and his wife Stephanie as “best friends”.
When is Cast Away on next?
The next episode of Cast Away airs tonight on Channel 5 at 9pm.
Schofield will be seen continuing his 10-day stay on a deserted Madagascan island with only a camera for company.
His entire trip has been filmed for a three-part mini series, which wraps up tomorrow (Wednesday) evening.
The first episode of Cast Away ended on a cliffhanger, with Phil lost in the dark while scavenging for food.
“I can’t even see,” he exclaimed. “There are Black Widows in these trees.”
Spotting a deadly looking spider with his head torch, he added: “I’m assuming that is what I think it is.”
Will the reviews be better tonight?
Schofield's first episode of Cast Away was certainly met with mixed reviews on social media.
Some viewers threatened to switch off, while others supported the broadcaster.
One simply said: “I’m all for #phillipschofield telling his side in #castaway but can they do one without the sad music?”
Highlights from last night's show
- He described coming out as gay as 'freedom on a plate'.
- Phillip began his first day on the island with a coconut before tucking in to some very sour mangoes.
- Being on a desert island has given Phillip a chance to reflect on his darkest days following his axing from This Morning.
- He credits his daughter for convincing him not to do anything stupid.
Act of kindness
Although Phillip Schofield received a backlash following his exit from This Morning, there were some acts of kindness amid it.
In an emotional scene in Cast Away, he revealed the moment he was hugged by a total stranger when he was at his lowest.
Phillip was visiting his sick mother in a Cornish hospital at the time and heard his name being called by a “big guy with a big red face and big arms and tattoos”.
“This guy said ‘Schofield’ and I said ‘yeah’ and I thought ‘oh s**t’ and he said ‘can I give you a hug mate?’ and I said ‘actually do you know you can’ and he gave me a massive, massive hug and said ‘they’re all s***s mate they’re all s***s’,” Phillip recalled.
From friends to bitter enemies
Following on from the post at 15.30 ... during this morning's confrontation, Eamonn then whipped off his glasses, and was eager to get stuck in further.
After the chat rumbled on he said: "I know people in junior positions in television and if I thought they were being taken advantage of in such a way then somebody needs to stand up and say 'people like him shouldn't exist and shouldn't be allowed'."
It came after Phil himself suggested he was "thrown under the bus" by ITV colleagues in a veiled dig at former co-star Holly Willoughby.
What to expect tonight
In tonight’s Cast Away, it appears Phil will be talking about being “thrown under a bus” amid his axing from This Morning.
Although he doesn’t name names, it is believed he is hinting at his former co-star Holly Willoughby.
In a teaser for Tuesday’s episode, he says: “When you throw someone under a bus, you’ve got to have a really bloody good reason to do it.”
It comes after Phil appeared to mock Holly in the first instalment, asking his family if they were “okay” at a bbq.
‘I’ll be watching’ – more mixed reviews
TV viewers have been posting on X about last night’s show … and it’s fair to say there are some mixed reviews.
Here are just a couple:
Feeling hungry
Schofield was given a brief lesson in survival once arriving in Madagascar, although his first attempts at finding food didn’t go too well.
Phillip began his first day on the island with a coconut before tucking in to some very sour mangoes.
But by the end of the episode, his luck was in… kind of. He went in search of food with a spear and managed to snare a crab.
The trouble is, it was pitch black at the time and he was unable to find his way back to camp…
Cast Away - what the critics say
Here's what the critics thought of last night's episode. Sensitive readers (and Channel 5 commissioners) may want to look away now ...
- "Phillip Schofield’s TV comeback Cast Away is one of the weirdest yet" - The Independent
- I suspect that this will leave those who disliked Phillip to feel even more suspicious of him' - The Sun
- "Phillip Schofield is an incredibly bitter man (but he sure knows how to entertain)" - The Guardian
- "It was compelling television, but not for the reasons Schofield hoped. It was a revealing study of what happens to an entitled TV star, fuelled by a belief that the public adores them, when the stardom and adulation is taken away. His daughter said: “On a desert island, you can’t fake it. This is the real you.” The real Schofield, on this evidence, is awful" - The Telegraph
- "That was the most boring hour I've ever watched on television" - Super TV
- "Queasy viewing, best avoided" - The Belfast Telegraph
Credit: PA
Eamonn snaps
An angry Eamonn Holmes snapped at his co-host live on air after she defended Phillip Schofield today.
Eamonn, 64, couldn't contain his wrath when Isabel Webster, 41, fought Phillip's corner following the airing of his TV comeback last night.
Schofield accused of lying over sacking
Phillip Schofield has been accused of lying about being sacked by ITV on his new TV show, Cast Away.
The shamed TV presenter, 62, made his comeback to screens on Monday night for a new documentary series where he’s stranded on a desert island for 10 days.
In April 2023, his brother Timothy Schofield was convicted of 11 sexual offences involving a child – including emotionally blackmailing a child into sex acts.
Phillip believes the discovery of Timothy's crimes caused ITV to edge him out before firing him. That may not be the whole story.
Big mistake
Anyone else make this mistake last night? MAke sure to tune in at 9pm tonight.
I forgot Phillip Schofield’s documentary was on tonight. I was expecting Tom Hanks to pop up when I checked the #️⃣ — Guru Premier (@TheGuruPremier)
Feeling hungry
Schofield was given a brief lesson in survival once arriving in Madagascar, although his first attempts at finding food didn’t go too well.
Phillip began his first day on the island with a coconut before tucking in to some very sour mangoes.
But by the end of the episode, his luck was in… kind of. He went in search of food with a spear and managed to snare a crab.
The trouble is, it was pitch black at the time and he was unable to find his way back to camp…
Finding fluids
It can be assumed Schofield was given a few hours’ supply of water after being dropped off on his island, as he didn’t go looking for some until the following morning.
He was seen traipsing through the wilderness in search of liquid before stumbling across a tiny puddle.
He scooped it up and took it back to camp, before boiling it and drinking it.
Schofield described it as “a lovely shade of urine”. Nice.
Act of kindness
Although Phillip Schofield received a backlash following his exit from This Morning, there were some acts of kindness amid it.
In an emotional scene in Cast Away, he revealed the moment he was hugged by a total stranger when he was at his lowest.
Phillip was visiting his sick mother in a Cornish hospital at the time and heard his name being called by a “big guy with a big red face and big arms and tattoos”.
“This guy said ‘Schofield’ and I said ‘yeah’ and I thought ‘oh s**t’ and he said ‘can I give you a hug mate?’ and I said ‘actually do you know you can’ and he gave me a massive, massive hug and said ‘they’re all s***s mate they’re all s***s’,” Phillip recalled.
What’s next?
In tonight’s Cast Away, it appears Phil will be talking about being “thrown under a bus” amid his axing from This Morning.
Although he doesn’t name names, it is believed he is hinting at his former co-star Holly Willoughby.
In a teaser for Tuesday’s episode, he says: “When you throw someone under a bus, you’ve got to have a really bloody good reason to do it.”
It comes after Phil appeared to mock Holly in the first instalment, asking his family if they were “okay” at a bbq.
'I'll be watching' - more mixed reviews
TV viewers have been posting on X about last night's show ... and it's fair to say there are some mixed reviews.
Here are just a couple:
Highlights from last night's show
- He described coming out as gay as 'freedom on a plate'.
- Phillip began his first day on the island with a coconut before tucking in to some very sour mangoes.
- Being on a desert island has given Phillip a chance to reflect on his darkest days following his axing from This Morning.
- He credits his daughter for convincing him not to do anything stupid.
Snubbing the show
Holly Willoughby gave Phillip Schofield’s Cast Away a wide berth last night.
His former This Morning co-star instead went to the theatre in London to watch her pal, Tamzin Outhwaite, in the play Abigail’s Party.
Cosying up to Tamzin for a selfie after the curtain went down, she wrote on Instagram: “@glamzin you are simply incredible. If you get the chance, please go and see this.”
