This Morning presenter Phillip Schofield’s friends were apparently worried he wouldn’t want to “put himself out there again” following the news his brother Timothy Schofield has been convicted of sex abuse.
Timothy previously denied performing sexual acts on a teenager and claimed they watched pornography together and had masturbated while sitting apart.
Yesterday, the IT technician from Avon and Somerset Police was found guilty of 11 sexual offences involving a child between 2016 and 2019, including two of sexual activity with a child, at Exeter Crown Court.
The ITV star, 61, released a statement on social media following his brother’s conviction, where he publicly disowned Timothy.
Taking to Instagram, he told his 2.9 million followers: “Statement about the conviction of Timothy Schofield: My overwhelming concern is and has always been for the wellbeing of the victim and his family.
“I hope that their privacy will now be respected,” he added.
“If any crime had ever been confessed to me by my sibling, I would have acted immediately to protect the victim and their family.
“These are despicable crimes, and I welcome the guilty verdicts,” he continued.
“As far as I am concerned, I no longer have a brother.”
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During the trial, Phillip took a break from hosting This Morning, with Alison Hammond and Joel Dommett stepping in to present alongside his co-presenter Holly Willoughby.
Friends reportedly felt that the star might not want to come back to the studio.
“Can you imagine what he has been through, it is just so awful to see and hear it all come out,” they told the Daily Mail.
“It was a concern that he might not want to put himself out there again,” they added.
“He must be going through so many devastating emotions right now.”
However, a source from ITV assured the publication: “Phillip is a much-loved member of our team and we wanted to make sure we supported him, we are so happy he will be back where he belongs.”
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