Glee star Jane Lynch has weighed in on the Phillip Schofield scandal after Holly Willoughby made an emotional statement on This Morning.
The 42-year-old made her highly-anticipated return to the ITV daytime show on Monday, and addressed the controversy surrounding Phil’s departure from This Morning - as well as his bombshell confession he had an affair with a young employee.
Holly was on holiday in Portugal with her family when the 61-year-old TV star announced he was leaving This Morning, and just one week later, he issued a statement confirming his “unwise but not illegal” extramarital affair with a male production assistant.
During Monday’s edition of the hit daytime show, a visibly upset Holly told viewers she was still processing Phil’s departure, and said it was “very strange” sitting on the iconic sofa without him.
While she said she felt “shaken, troubled, let down and worried”, it was “equally hard to see the toll” the scandal has taken on the father-of-two, who has given interviews in recent days discussing his mental wellbeing.
Hollywood star Jane, 62, best known for her role as cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester on the hit musical comedy drama series Glee, took to social media to focus on Holly’s compassion for her beleaguered ex-colleague.
“She’s worried about the toll this whole thing has taken on Philip Schofield’s mental health,” Jane wrote, alongside a video of Holly’s statement from the official This Morning Twitter account.
Fans were stunned to see Jane wade into the scandal, with one tweeting: "Blows my mind how this story has reached @janemarielynch."
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"Omg this story has got so big celebrities in America are retweeting it," another added.
Speaking directly to the viewers, the TV presenter was with Josie Gibson as she addressed the scandal, and confessed she had been suffering with her own mental health since the news broke.
“Hi there. Good morning. Josie, thank you for being here. Right, deep breath. Firstly, are you OK? It feels very strange indeed sitting here without Phil,” the mum-of-three began.
“And I imagine that you might have been feeling a lot like I have - shaken, troubled, let down, worried for the wellbeing of people on all sides of what's been going on, and full of questions,” Holly continued.
“You, me and all of us at This Morning gave our love and support to someone who was not telling the truth, who acted in a way that they themselves felt that they had to resign from ITV, and step down from a career that they loved. That is a lot to process.
“And it's equally hard to see the toll that it's taken on their own mental health. I think what unites us all now is a desire to heal for the health and wellbeing of everyone,” Holly added, touching briefly upon Phil’s own admission in a BBC interview that he had been feeling suicidal.
“I hope that, as we start this new chapter and get back to a place of warmth and magic that this show holds for all of us, we can find strength in each other,” she said, as she thanked the viewers and fans for sending in kind messages to her and the This Morning presenting team, including Alison Hammond and Dermot O'Leary.
