Emotional Phillip Schofield reveals act of kindness from a stranger that ‘lifted his spirits’ amid suicidal thoughts
PHILIP Schofield has revealed the act of kindness from a stranger that ‘lifted his spirits’ amid his mental health decline.
The broadcaster, 62, was forced to leave This Morning and subsequently ITV last year after admitting to an “unwise but not illegal” affair with a younger member of production.
Following the revelation, Phillip was left suicidal as his daughters Molly and Ruby looked after him.
But now the star returns to screens to tell his version of the story in Channel 5’s Cast Away.
During the show – which kicks off at 9pm and airs over three nights this week – Schofe reveals how a simple act of kindness from a stranger helped him while we experienced suicidal thoughts.
He had locked himself away at home while suffering with his mental health when his mum became ill, forcing him to leave and visit her in Cornwall.
Phillip explained: “I walked into the reception of the hospital and a big guy with a big red face and big arms and tattoos and I walked into reception trying to find where the intensive care unit was.
“This guy said ‘Schofield’ and I said ‘yeah’ and I thought ‘oh s**t’ and he said ‘can I give you a hug mate?’ and I said ‘actually do you know you can’ and he gave me a massive, massive hug and said ‘they’re all s***s mate they’re all s***s’.”
Phillip also revealed his health deteriorated so badly he had planned to end his life.
In emotional scenes, he recalls: “A year ago I got so close. I had everything in place, everything was set up and everything was ready…
“Molly and Ruby [were] both looking after me at the time and Molly said ‘do you imagine what this would do to us if you actually managed to pull this off?’
“And that was just enough, just enough to take a step back from the edge.
“I could have been hospitalised. I had the option to be. hospitalised but then I thought that is going to get out. So I just raced back to the family home and shut the gates and I was in there.'”
The Sun first revealed how Schofield was returning to television – 16 months after the scandal first broke.
Cast Away verdict
By Rod McPhee
OVER three nights – and three hour-long episodes – Phillip Schofield has been bearing his soul in new Channel 5 show Cast Away.
And it’s basically a chance for the former This Morning host to explain the circumstances that saw him leave the show last year.
To put it mildly, he left under something of a cloud, admitting he’d had a fling with a much younger runner on the programme. But in the C5 show he presents his own versions of events – one which is at odds with the narrative that emerged at the time.
He was portrayed as a man who’d had an “unwise” affair, who’d resigned as a result and had let many of his colleagues down.
But in Cast Away Philip insists he was fired by ITV and not for the affair, but because of the bad publicity that surrounded the crimes of his paedophile brother. He summed it up best when he claimed he’d been “pushed under a bus.”
After watching Cast Away what you’re left with is something rather confusing, however.
Did Philip think he’d done something wrong by having the fling with the runner, or not? For example, he said he wouldn’t have been slammed for it quite so much if it were a heterosexual fling.
He said he: “would have received a pat on the back for having an affair with a woman.” This infers that the only thing wrong with it was that it was a same sex fling. So why does he also say: “I will be forever sorry. I screwed up. I made a mistake.”
The answer, I suspect, is that the whole affair was a murky business. There were so many blurred lines around appropriateness, professionalism and honesty.
The only firm conclusion you can draw from the show is that Phillip himself isn’t ENTIRELY sure to what extent He was guilty of wrongdoing.
Amid the confusion, what will the viewing public think? I suspect that this will leave those who disliked Phillip to feel even more suspicious of him.
Those who backed him, will feel reassured too. But those who still aren’t sure what to think will be none-the-wiser – and I’m not sure if that’s what Phillip would have wanted.
We also told how Phillip blasts “three three s**ts in showbiz’ while on a remote island for Cast Away.
Speaking about his 40-year career, he says: “They know how important that was to me.
“They know when you throw someone under a bus, you’ve got to have a really bloody good reason to do it. Brand, ambition is not good enough.”
Phil added: “People can be fake. They can be so fake with you when it’s all going well, and suddenly utter, utter betrayal.”
You're Not Alone
EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide
It doesn’t discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society – from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers.
It’s the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes.
And men are three times more likely to take their own life than women.
Yet it’s rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now.
That is why The Sun launched the You’re Not Alone campaign.
The aim is that by sharing practical advice, raising awareness and breaking down the barriers people face when talking about their mental health, we can all do our bit to help save lives.
Let’s all vow to ask for help when we need it, and listen out for others… You’re Not Alone.
If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support:
- CALM, www.thecalmzone.net, 0800 585 858
- Heads Together,www.headstogether.org.uk
- HUMEN www.wearehumen.org
- Mind, www.mind.org.uk, 0300 123 3393
- Papyrus, www.papyrus-uk.org, 0800 068 41 41
- Samaritans,www.samaritans.org, 116 123