The mother of the late ITV presenter Caroline Flack has given her thoughts on the ongoing scandal surrounding the former This Morning host Phillip Schofield, after the broadcaster said he understood “how [she] felt” amid “relentless” media criticism of his affair with a younger male colleague.
Schofield quit the popular ITV daytime show in May, before releasing a statement in which he confirmed he had a “consensual on-off relationship” which was “unwise, but not illegal”.
In his first broadcast interview since issuing these comments, carried out by the BBC’s media editor Amol Rajan, the broadcaster said he has “lost everything”.
“My girls saved my life… Last week, they haven’t left me for a moment. They’ve been by my side every moment, because they’re scared to let me out of their sight," Schofield said.
“They said to me, ‘don’t you dare do this on our watch. We’re supposed to be looking after you.’
“If my girls hadn’t been there, I wouldn’t be here, because I don’t see a future. And so how much do you want a man to take?
“And this is how Caroline Flack felt, and it didn’t stop.”
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Flack quit ITV2’s reality show Love Island in December 2019 after facing an assault charge over an altercation with her boyfriend. She died by suicide two months later amid intense criticism online and in the press.
Now, after Schofield referenced her daughter’s experience in his BBC interview, Caroline Flack’s mother Christine spoke to Newsnight and confirmed she does “feel worried for him” amid the “relentless” comments around the scandal.
After presenter Victoria Derbyshire read Schofield’s remarks to Ms Flack, she replied: “That’s exactly how she felt. Everyday, she’d try and be a little bit stronger, which I imagine Phillip is, and you get more and more thrown at you.
“He knew Caroline, and I must say when she died he was very upset, and I think he’s now realising even more what she went through. But until it happens to you, you feel sad, but you don’t understand.”
Asked what her message to Schofield would be, Ms Flack added: “I hope they’ll get over this, and they will. They will.
“Don’t do anything silly. You’ve got your daughters, you’ve got your friends.“
Ms Flack has since been commended online for her comments on social media.
In his lengthy interview with the BBC, Schofield also said the fact the scandal has become “so massive” is “predominantly homophobic”, and that he is a “victim of hate”.
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