Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield have great chemistry on-screen - and have also formed an incredibly close relationship away from the cameras. The presenting duo have hosted This Morning together since 2009 but were first put together on Dancing on Ice three years earlier.
When Fern Britton announced she was stepping down from ITV's flagship daytime show after a decade at the helm in March 2009, a frantic search began to find her replacement. Phillip claimed she was "at the top of everybody's list to pick up where Fern leaves off" and the "number one choice", but it later transpired he was a lone voice in suggesting that Holly should get the presenting gig.
Holly later revaled she heard cruel comments after being linked to the job and the only reason she got the role was because of Phillip's determination.
She believed she was being written off by critics claiming she would be 'unable to interview a Prime Minister'.
Speaking on Elizabeth Day's podcast How To Fail in November last year, Holly explained: "If it wasn’t for Phil, I wouldn't be on This Morning now because everyone around him at the time when he suggested my name, were like, 'What? No! She might be alright in the fashion bit but there’s no way she could interview the Prime Minister…'
During a special episode of Lorraine, which was dedicated to celebrating Phillip's 40 years in the TV industry, Holly thanked her This Morning co-host for helping her secure the job.
On how he stepped in to push for her to get the role, Holly said: "I thank you every day because I know really you were on your own with that school of thought.
"It was down to you kind of standing by that that I got that job without a doubt. Without you there is no way I would be doing This Morning today."
The pair had an interesting first day as Holly's nerves were shot to bits just seconds before going on air.
Nervous Holly looked looked like a rabbit in the headlights as the cameras went live while she tightly gripped hold of Phillip Schofield's arm.
The veteran This Morning host then pretend to storm off the set, jokingly threatening to leave Holly to present her first show on her own.
Phil explained: "Just as the titles started I said, 'Nah, I'm not doing it'."
"Come back, I'm holding on very tightly," shrieked Holly as she vigorously yanked Phillip back alongside her - a sign of the banterous relationship the pair would form.
Holly said she was initially 'scared' about working with such a big name but quickly realised they were cut from the same cloth.
"I love that man. I'd obviously watched him on the telly lots, he was in the Broom Cupboard , he was my children's TV presenter that I used to watch," she once told the Jonathan Ross Show.
"I was a bit scared when I first met him but that changed very quickly when I realised he was basically me in the male form."
Off screen, their friendship flourished with the couple and their families holidaying to Portugal together almost every year.
Their partners Stephanie and Dan Baldwin became friends too while Phil's daughters Ruby and Molly doted on Holly's younger kids, Harry, Belle and Chester.
As an exhausted, working mum Holly found comfort in colleague Phil who had been through it with his own little ones.
"We spend quite a lot of time together and quite often I'd come in in the morning and I wouldn't have slept properly because of the kids or something and he's my first port of call to talk to, really," she previously told the Radio Times.
And for Phil, Holly quickly became his confidante, with the pair developing a level of trust that's rare in the entertainment business.
"Holly is incredibly sympathetic," Phil said in the same sit-down chat, revealing that she's the holder of his most protected secrets.
He continued: "She's the best person to tell secrets to. She's got a brilliant ability to see sense through mess. She's also more diplomatic than I am.
"If we disagree on something, which is rare, we very quickly see the other person's point of view. And we don't have egos between the pair of us – there's none of that nonsense."
The pair were forced to defend their friendship after rumours of a civil war at ITV between Phil and his since departed co-host Ruth Langsford.
The tensions were said to have increased when Holly allegedly banned Phillip from posting videos of her drinking alcohol on his social media - and apparently asked her management company to break the news.
This Morning bosses hit back at the claims and said Phillip and Holly had a "genuine friendship".
A spokesperson said: "We have the smartest viewers watching telly and believe me they would be the first to notice any issues — they haven't because there are none."
ITV also refuted any unrest, saying in a full statement: "It's deeply disappointing and unfair for Phillip to be the target of this sort of malicious gossip.
Phillip is a much respected broadcaster and colleague and this is absolutely not a description of This Morning that we recognise.
"Holly and Phil are great friends both on and off screen and are popular among viewers and colleagues alike."
Holly claimed there was no way they could 'fake' their close bond wjile working with each other four times a week.
"We ring each other and talk to each other all the time anyway, about this and other things," Holly told Closer magazine.
She continued: "We know what we’re like. It would be impossible for us to fake the giggles. I’m on the telly for two and a half hours - let me tell you, I’m not that good an actress. If I was, I’d be doing something else."
When Phil came out as gay on This Morning in February 2020, it was his co-host and best friend who held his hand as poured his heart out to the nation.
Wrapping a comforting arm around the man who convinced show bosses to hire her back in 2009, Holly held Phil tight as he sobbed in moving scenes.
Having been married to wife Steph for 27 years, Phil's turmoil was caused by his desperate desire not to hurt either her or their two daughters Molly and Ruby.
It was Steph who he confided in from the beginning, but not even his closest friends aware of what was going on behind the scenes.
Holly began to notice something was wrong with her pal and gently tried to encourage Phil to share whatever was on his mind.
"Holly knew something was wrong. A number of times she took me to one side and asked if I was okay," Phil wrote in his autobiography, Life's What You Make It.
"She never pushed, she was always so gentle and caring, but I could tell she was worried about me. 'Please talk to me,' she said. 'Because I am always here.'"
Eventually - when he felt strong enough - Phil realised he needed to share the burden of his fears and there was no-one he wanted to share with more than Holly.
"One day I knew I had to tell her, because I needed her. I needed her advice and her wisdom and I needed her to have my back at work if I faltered," he wrote.
He decided the best way to do it was to invite her to his dressing room, where he laid bare the torment of the last few years - and her reaction floored him.
"I told her everything. I knew she would be incredible, she was so much more than that," he continued.
From that point on, Holly became his confidante, subtly helping him 'hold everything together' at work.
In January this year, the duo opened up about the close bond they share together after working with one another for over a decade.
Speaking about their friendship and the difference between Dancing on Ice and This Morning, Holly told The Mirror: "They're different shows and that's what's so nice about it. There's a real ease when we work together.
"It's not like you're going in like, oh we just need to find our feet or rhythm, it's an absolute given. It's nice to be doing something a bit different but still together."
Calling Holly his best friend, Phil added: "I agree. The lovely thing is, I get to spend even more time with my best mate.
"It's lovely and I adore Holly completely and absolutely and so to be able to joke around together in the mornings."
