Holly Willoughby had a rather uncomfortable crossover with Ruth Langsford as she returned to front This Morning, following the news of her former co-host Phillip's affair with a younger ITV colleague and had taken a break from presenting.
And it didn't take long for ITV viewers to pick up on the awkward exchange as the pair spoke via video link as Holly passed across to the Loose Women star, which comes just days after Ruth's husband Eamonn Holmes blasted This Morning and Phillip.
Following an interview with Queen frontman Adam Lambert, Holly said: "Let's find out what Loose Women are talking about today. Hi there, Ruth," as the video link of Ruth Langsford appeared on the screen from the Loose Women studio.
"Yeah, we love Adam Lambert, too!," Ruth responded to Holly before blowing him kisses into the camera. According to reports in the Mirror, viewers then took to Twitter to share their thoughts on the "uncomfortable" moment between the two ITV hosts.
One person said: "Ruth looks Incredibly uncomfortable," whilst another added: "Feel for Ruth! this is so wrong!"
"Wow Holly having to crossover to Ruth on #loosewomen, considering how Ruth's husband has been sniping about Holly, that must of been awkward," added another.
It follows on from previous reports former This Morning host Eamonn, 63, lashed out at Phillip following his string of interviews last week in the aftermath of his bombshell affair as he accused him of "lies" that he hasn't made "one mistake" in his 40-year-career.
The 61-year-old host said his career on television was over following his admission about the affair with an ITV showrunner, but also claims he is a "victim of hate" and he has "lost everything" as a consequence of his lies.
Phil's former colleague Eamonn doesn't appear to have any time for his comments however, lashing out at him on GB news as he called for "anyone watching today who has kissed Phillip Schofield, let us know."
"He said in his forty-odd years of broadcasting that he's made one mistake, he had one kiss that he shouldn't have had," Eamonn said.
Meanwhile, Holly addressed the scandal as she returned to screens for the first time since the news had broke about her former colleague and pal and was blasted for her "fake" statement to ITV viewers.
Opening the show with Josie Gibson, Holly told viewers she had felt "shaken, troubled [and] let down" over Phillip's admission he'd had an affair with a younger colleague who worked on the daytime show.
She admitted it was "hard to see the toll that it's on [Phillip's] mental health" before speaking of a "new chapter" for This Morning.
It didn't take long for viewers to pile back onto social media with their thoughts, and whilst some people believed Holly looked like she could do with a hug others blasted her for her "insincere" speech and even accused her of throwing Phil under the bus.
Returning to This Morning after an extended half-term break, Holly said: "Deep breath - firstly, are you OK? I hope so. It feels very strange sitting here without Phil and I imagine you might be 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.
"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 well-being of everyone. 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.
"And from my own heart, can I just say thank you for all of your kind messages and thank you for being here this morning. Myself, Josie, Dermot, Alison and Craig and every single person on this show will continue to work hard every single day to bring you the show that we love."
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