Philip Schofield is finally speaking out.
The disgraced ITV presenter has sat down for the emotional interview for the first time since he was embroiled in an affair with a younger colleague on This Morning.
Speaking to Amol Rajan, a journalist for the BBC, he said that his "career is over" and he will "die sorry" as a result of the affair.
Philip Schofield told the BBC that, since leaving ITV and This Morning,
he has "lost everything" adding "this is how Caroline Flack felt."Read more: https://t.co/HnZsmqGHTt pic.twitter.com/jrkpEA8Of7
— Sky News (@SkyNews) June 2, 2023
He went on to talk about how his mental health has been affected and compared the situation to Caroline Flack, the Love Island presenter who took her own life back in January 2020.
"It is relentless, and it is day after day, after day after day," Philip said, speaking on the reaction from the public. "Do you want me to die? Because that’s where I am."
He described having suicidal thoughts as he says if it weren't for his two daughters he "wouldn't be here."
"They've been by my side every moment because they're scared to let me out of their sight."
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He went on to talk about how he felt homophobia played a big part in how the public has reacted to the scandal.
"I fully appreciate there is a massive age gap, but that happens in life," he said. "I think there is an enormous amount of homophobia that it happens to be male, but if it was male-female then it wouldn't be such a scandal."
He was given his chance to tell his side of the story, how he first met the man - who at the time was 15 years old - at a drama school event. After that the pair followed each other on Twitter and later on the boy went on to become a runner on This Morning.
He said when he first started working on the show there was absolutely no hint of any sexual attraction, but that something changed a few months later and the relationship suddenly became a romantic one.
ITV have said they investigated reports of the "unwise but not illegal" affair, but they had denied it in initial statements when Philip did.
Philip Schofield: The Interview is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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