Appearing puffy-eyed and looking exhausted as she read the news headlines on This Morning last week, the effect of the past two weeks on Holly Willoughby was evident.
Earlier this month, she was TV’s ultimate golden girl, but following an enormous backlash from viewers over what has now been dubbed “queue-gate”, sources say the morale among both Holly, 41, and her on-screen partner and best friend Phillip Schofield, 60, is “at rock bottom”.
The source says, “Both Holly and Phil have been totally dumbstruck at how events have unfolded and they worry how they will recover.
“It’s never been so bad. The fallout from ‘queue-gate’ has only heightened ongoing concerns and reports that Holly and Phil’s time may be drawing to an end on This Morning.”
And according to the source, ITV could make a shock move to secure Stacey Solomon and Joe Swash as new presenters. “Executives on the show have admired Stacey Solomon for a long time. She’s a huge hit on Loose Women and has a broad appeal among all age groups who watch ITV,” they reveal.
“Stacey actually started talking to This Morning bosses several months ago and they made clear they saw a role for both her and Joe to work as part of the programme in the future. Stacey, who is a big fan of Holly, said this was something that interested them both.”
The furore began last Friday when footage emerged of the presenting duo appearing to skip the queue – which at its height reached 10 miles long, for the Queen’s lying-in-state – and filing past the coffin with other members of the press.
The poignant tradition, which saw hundreds of thousands of members of the public, and celebrities including David Beckham, Tilda Swinton, Sharon Osbourne, Dame Kelly Holmes and notably, Good Morning Britain presenter Susanna Reid, queuing for up to 24 hours, enabled mourners to pay their respects and say their goodbyes to the much-loved monarch for the final time ahead of her burial last Monday.
Within hours, a petition had been started on Change.org to sack Holly and Phil from their roles on This Morning and describing them as “toxic” and accusing ITV of “exploiting the situation”.
The source adds, “Both Phil and Holly have been left wounded by this whole affair and, more importantly, really worried about the relationship with their viewers. Without them they have no show and right now many are so very angry at how they behaved.”
At the time Closer went to press, over 65,000 people had signed the damning petition, with no signs of slowing following Holly’s on-air apology last Wednesday.
Addressing viewers, Holly, who is said to have called in lawyers, explained, “None of the broadcasters and journalists there took anyone’s place in the queue and no one filed past the Queen. We of course respected those rules. However, we realise that it may have looked like something else, and therefore totally understand the reaction. Please know that we would never jump a queue.”
While the insider reveals how senior bosses – who confirmed via social media that they had asked Holly and Phil to attend the lying-in-state at Westminster Hall – are adamant they won’t take the blame and are therefore unlikely to sack Holly and Phil, they say the incident has further prompted conversations over the future of the show.
“No one working in and around the programme would be surprised to see Holly and Phil walk away in the very near future,” they said.
“But ITV bosses have long been planning for what life looks like after Phil and Holly, because they know nothing lasts forever on TV.”
Alison Hammond, 47, and Dermot O’Leary, 49, who joined in January have proved a huge hit with viewers, but producers are also very keen on newlyweds Stacey, 32, and Joe, 40, who both have extensive presenting experience. Following her appearance on The X Factor in 2009, which saw her come third, Stacey landed her first presenting gig in 2012 for Sky dating show, The Love Machine, she joined Loose Women in 2016 – before joining I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! Extra Camp, where she worked with then-boyfriend Joe, later that year.
The mum-of-four, who wed Joe in July, also joined the panel of Celebrity Juice in 2019, before her own show, Sort Your Life Out, was commissioned by the BBC last year.
Meanwhile, Joe began his presenting career with the I’m A Celeb spin-off in 2009, before joining several panel and game shows, including Minute To Win, Celebrity Driving Academy and Fake Reaction. He has also appeared on Strictly Come Dancing, The Jump and Celebrity MasterChef.
But the source says the way their fans connect with their sense of humour and down-to-earth personalities – including Stacey’s Primark bargains and DIY – is what makes them such a huge success in a time of uncertainty over rising costs.
The source adds, “Alison and Dermot will continue to play a key part, but Joe and Stacey have the ‘X factor’ as a famous, married couple and many people at ITV think this will give them the edge in the long-run.
“TV producers think they eventually could be the future of the show, and a great potential replacement for when the moment arrives for Holly and Phil to hand over their This Morning crowns.”