Phillip Schofield leaving This Morning after over 20 years on the sofa was addressed today (Monday, May 22) after it was announced over the weekend that he had exited the show.
However, in my opinion, the tribute was utterly bizarre and seriously rushed. It was a very strange way to cap off over two decades of Phillip on the show…
Phillip Schofield leaving This Morning addressed
Over the weekend, it was announced that Phillip had exited the show after over 20 years on the sofa. Phillip announced the news in a brief statement on Instagram. Today, his exit was addressed by Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary at the beginning of the programme.
“We can’t start today’s show without paying tribute to the man who spent the last two decades sitting on the This Morning sofa, Phillip Schofield,” Alison said.
Dermot then continued, saying that everyone on the show and ITV “want to say a huge thank you to Phil for what he’s done to make the show so special and such a success over the last 21 years”.
“Quite simply, we all know he’s one of the best live television broadcasters this country has ever had. And we, and all the team, wish him all the best for the future,” Alison added.
And that was it…
Phillip Schofield tribute on This Morning was utterly bizarre
I mean, that was a bit weird, wasn’t it? The funeral-like atmosphere, the speed of it – it was as though Alison and Dermot couldn’t get through it quick enough!
Neither presenter looked comfortable doing the tribute at the beginning of the show – and it looked as though hardly any effort had been put in by the This Morning team either.
Viewers found the tribute to be a bit uncomfortable too. “Today’s #ThisMorning was… interesting. The tribute to Phil was a bit strange but at least they acknowledged him and the situation,” one viewer said. “HARDLY a tribute? 30 seconds with a few still images. Plus, Alison Hammond looked uncomfortable AS HELL,” another said.
“Wow, that was QUITE the tribute,” a third then wrote.
Phillip had been on the show since 2002. He has presented alongside the likes of Holly Willoughby, Fern Britton, and Amanda Holden. There are hours worth of compilations on YouTube showing off Phillip’s “funniest moments”, his biggest arguments on the show, and all his blunders.
And yet, not a single clip was shown during the 30-second tribute. Instead, a few stock images of Phillip smiling on set flashed across the screen instead. It just felt… odd, I suppose.
Was it rushed?
At the end of the day, after 21 years on the show, Phillip’s tribute amounted to “thanks for making the show great, Phil, all the best”. To say it was rushed is an understatement.
I honestly thought there would be a big tribute episode for him today (or at some point this week). 21 years is a long time and a lot has happened on the show (good and bad) during that time.
Yet it feels as though it was a quick acknowledgment that he’s gone – and then on with the show.
It’s one that has probably opened a bigger can of worms than if the show did a five-minute montage of all of Phillip’s moments or something at the start of today’s show.
I can’t help but feel as though ITV has mucked this one up. The rushed tribute has succeeded in one thing – leaving us with more questions than we started with…
Read more: Phillip Schofield ‘completely broken’ over This Morning exit as more shock details ‘revealed’
This Morning airs on weekdays from 10am on ITV1 and ITVX.
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