She’s earned a reputation as TV’s “golden girl”, but it’s not been the best start to the new year for Holly Willoughby after plans for a second series of her big budget BBC show, Freeze The Fear With Wim Hof were axed.
Holly, 41 took time off her main presenting gig at This Morning last January in what was dubbed as her “big return” to the BBC after more than a decade as Queen of ITV.
While the extreme reality show – which featured a host of celebs taking on challenges in the freezing Italian Dolomites – was set to be Holly’s big comeback to the channel, the star has understandably been left bruised by the news.
Our source says, “Making the jump to the BBC last year was a huge decision for Holly, but she thought it was an amazing format and her chance to start branching out, not only into a different channel, but also into a new, exciting adventure, which she adored filming.
“Finding out there are no plans for another series was a bitter blow and has understandably knocked her confidence – even more so given all the big mistakes in her career over the last few months.”
Holly’s glittering presenting career was left hanging in the balance at the end of last year after the so-called “queue-gate” drama, which left thousands of This Morning viewers calling for her and co-host Phillip Schofield to be booted off the show.
The 41-year-old mum-of-three saw her TV crown slip amid the scandal in which she and Phil, 60, were accused of using their fame to skip the 27-hour line to watch the Queen lying in state.
It followed reports that the star – who shares children, Harry, 13, Belle, 11 and eight-year-old Chester with TV producer husband, Dan Baldwin – was at risk of being replaced by Stacey Solomon following rumours ITV had been looking to source a new duo to freshen up the show.
The star also received another setback when her wellness brand Wylde Moon failed to land with “regular” people due to its “hippy content” and “overpriced” merchandise.
And while the Dancing On Ice host is said to be upset by the latest career wobble, she’s determined not to let the disappointing news dictate the narrative for the year ahead.
The source adds, “Holly’s got a lot of exciting projects in the pipeline to focus on and is adamant she won’t be held back over Freeze The Fear, insisting it was a great learning opportunity and focusing on her mantra that everything happens for a reason.
“However, she is conscious of how many knocks her reputation has taken over the last few months and is working closely with a PR guru in a bid to repair her image.
“She’s been advised to be more open about her family life and give more of a ‘real’ insight into her juggle of being a working mum to help her become more relatable again, as well as opening up more about her diet and exercise regime, which she’s been notoriously secretive about.
“Holly’s been through an extremely tough few months but isn’t going to let one piece of bad news set the tone for what she’s insisting will be her best year yet and vows to regain her crown as Queen of Telly.”