For as long as we can remember, Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield have come as a package deal - making audiences laugh and cry as they hosted some of Britain's top shows together, including This Morning and Dancing on Ice.
However, the best-friend duo is no more and their relationship has been left in tatters amid the news that Phillip Schofield lied about his affair with a younger member of staff at ITV.
Phillip has since parted ways with the TV network and has been dropped by his management team at YMU after confessing to the "unwise but not illegal" relationship, which took place while he was still married to his wife Stephanie Lowe.
In a new interview with The Sun, Phillip opened up about how the lies have impacted his friendship with Holly and the last text message he sent her.
"The last time we had a conversation was when I texted Holly and said, 'Don’t reply' – this was after the statement last week – 'Don’t reply, you're probably not allowed to, but I am deeply deeply sorry that I lied to you.'"
The TV stars have been in each other's lives since 2006 when they first worked on Dancing on Ice together.
At the time, Phillip was already a household name, having worked on Going Live!, Broom Cupboard and Test the Nation and he was presenting This Morning alongside Fern Britton.
Holly had some presenting credits under her belt with CITV and CBBC, for shows such as Ministry of Mayhem and CBBC At The Fame Academy, but this was her first major primetime television gig.
Appearing on The Jonathan Ross show in September 2017, Holly confessed that she was initially quite nervous about working with Phillip.
"I was a bit scared when I first met him but that changed very quickly when I realised he was basically me in the male form," she said.
However, the pair quickly hit it off, so much so, that when Fern left This Morning in 2009, Phillip fought for Holly to be her replacement.
The 42-year-old mum-of-three has previously told The Sunday Post how Phillip helped her secure her job on the ITV show.
She said: "I know for a fact that he was the one that mentioned me. He pushed for me to get the job in the first place.
"I totally owe him everything."
And Phillip was quoted in 2017 in The Sun as saying that he threatened to leave if they didn't hire Holly.
"We had such fun on DOI that when the position became vacant on This Morning, I said 'Holly is the only person I want. If I can't have her I am not playing'," he reportedly said.
Holly landed the role and the pair presented the show every Monday to Thursday morning since then, with Dermot O'Leary and Alison Hammond filling in on Fridays.
The two quickly became firm favourites with viewers as their friendship shone through as they co-hosted This Morning, with the pair regularly falling into laughter and making cheeky comments.
This was highlighted during moments such as in 2016 after they won a National Television Award. The pair celebrated heavily after the win and appeared on the sofa the next morning wearing the same outfits from the night before.
Their laughing fit over the antics from the night before quickly went viral.
However, the episode has since received backlash from some, as they made several references to being drunk and not having had any sleep.
As they continued to host the show, Holly became known as the 'golden girl' of TV and her star grew brighter and brighter, with her taking on numerous other roles - including co-presenting I'm A Celebrity with Dec in 2018 and winning a BAFTA for it.
However, her success reportedly caused "tension" in their friendship - especially after a joint cover shoot they did for The Sunday Times in 2019 where it was proclaimed that she'd "eclipsed" Phillip to become the "Queen of TV".
As reported by The Mirror at the time, Phillip was "deeply unhappy" about the magazine cover.
A source told The Sun on Sunday: "To say there has been a bit of tension is an understatement.
"It all kicked off after Phil and Holly agreed to do the Sunday Times Magazine interview, part of their contractual press obligations with ITV."
Holly, who was said to be "quite mortified" over the whole thing, later shared a different image from their shoot on her social media without the wording, or crown that had been drawn on her head.
The Sunday Times was forced to write a letter apologising to Phillip's management, and he later took to Twitter to tell his followers that rumours about a strain on his friendship with Holly were "hurtful".
This Morning bosses also hit back at claims that Holly and Phillip were having issues, claiming they had a "genuine friendship".
A spokesperson said: "We have the smartest viewers watching telly and believe me they would be the first to notice any issues - they haven't because there are none."
Any remaining concerns were put to rest when the pals were seen enjoying a trip together with their partners to the Algarve in August 2019.
The pair had a tradition of taking holidays together each year with their families and just weeks after the explosive rumours, they started sharing fun-filled photos and videos on social media, including selfies on Phil's Snapchat.
Phil admitted he was struggling with a hangover after a particularly boozy night out with Holly, posting a video where he looked worse for wear.
The duo were reportedly spotted enjoying lunch and drinking gin cocktails at Parrilla Beach Club in Praia do Ancão, 10 minutes from their five-star resort Quinta do Lago.
Holly went on to discuss the feud rumours in 2021, while appearing on Fearne Cotton's Happy Place podcast. She admitted that she couldn't deal with people having the wrong idea about them.
She said: "I was watching from afar when you've got every person in the press saying that you and Phillip are having a tough time. Meanwhile, you're great friends and there were no arguments.
"That was a particularly difficult time. But I remember having a conversation with Phil and it was like, 'But we know'."
Holly added: "I have to believe that, as long as you know inside, and you know the truth - you know your truth – then everything is ok."
Their friendship only seemed to have gotten stronger by 2020, when Holly supported Phillip when he announced he is gay.
The pair shared an emotional hug on the This Morning sofa, after Phillip came out, with Holly saying: "I will always be by your side."
This was said in response to him telling his friend that he "couldn't have done it without you".
Former This Morning presenters Eamon Holmes and Ruth Langsford then joined them on the sofa, where Eamon revealed a few more tidbits about Holly and Phillip's friendship while discussing the presenter's sexuality.
He said: "There is this great imponderable in life that has always bothered me, I thought how come he can sit in a hot tub with Holly Willoughby and Steph doesn't have a problem and Dan doesn't have a problem."
His comments were later branded 'gross' and 'inappropriate' by social media users.
Speaking about his coming out on The One Show, Phillip further praised Holly's support, saying: "I couldn't have done that with anyone else, I wouldn't have wanted anyone else to be sitting by the side of me.
"We'd had a big lead-up to that moment and Holly was one of the first people that I told and she's such a wise person. She's got such a calm, sensitive aura to her."
He also told Chris Evans’ How To Wow podcast in October 2020 that the 'feud' reports were nonsense as she'd been "holding him together at work".
Real issues began for the friends in 2022 when they faced major backlash over skipping the queue to see the Queen lying in state following her death.
The queue to see the Queen's coffin stretched for hours, with some waiting more than 20 hours to pay their respects, but Holly and Phillip were seen inside Westminster Hall and were accused of 'jumping the queue'.
They received vicious trolling online over this, but were supported by This Morning bosses who insisted they attended for a segment of the show.
The pair insisted they would "never jump a queue" and that they were using media accreditation to film segments for the ITV show, which were then aired.
A source told the Mirror that the reaction "had taken a huge emotional toll on both Holly and Phil," adding: "They have been left distraught."
During a special episode of This Morning reflecting on the days since the Queen’s death, Holly said in a voiceover: "Like hundreds of accredited broadcasters and journalists we were given official permission to access the hall.
"It was strictly for the purpose of reporting on the event for millions of people in the UK who have not been able to visit Westminster in person.
"The rules were that we would be quickly escorted around the edges to a platform at the back. In contrast, those paying respect walked along a carpeted area beside the coffin and were given time to pause.
"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."
Little did the pair know that by that time the next year, their friendship would be shattered.
In May 2023, reports began circulating of another 'feud' between the two and it was claimed they were barely speaking off camera, as eagle-eyed fans noticed that Holly had started distancing herself from Phillip on her social media.
Her Twitter bio previously said: "I was introduced to this by a Twitter legend," and had Phillip tagged.
However, she changed it to: "Broadcaster, Founder of Wyldemoon, Brand ambassador for Marks & Spencer and Garnier, Author of Reflections".
The rumours came as Phillip was said to have kept Holly in the dark over his brother Timothy's trial for child sex offences. Timothy was sentenced to 12 years in prison after being found guilty of sexually abusing a teenage boy.
Phillip is said to have then ''blindsided' Holly when he released a statement calling her his 'rock' in a bid to put speculation to rest.
He said: "The last few weeks haven't been easy for either of us. My family went through a real ordeal.
"And Holly's support throughout meant the world to me, as did the support of my bosses at ITV, my editor Martin Frizell and the whole This Morning family, including our amazing viewers."
Phillip explained that Holly had been his pal through "thick and thin".
But Holly is said to have been 'deeply upset' by the statement as she had no idea Phil was going to speak publicly about their rumoured rift.
A source claimed it was "desperate stuff" from Phillip given the current state of their relationship.
Holly did not publicly reply to the statement.
Following weeks of uncertainty about the state of the pair's friendship, Phillip then stepped down from This Morning but there was no mention of Holly in the statement he released.
However, in response Holly shared a sweet tribute to her former co-host, saying: "Hi everyone...It's been over 13 great years presenting This Morning with Phil and I want to take this opportunity to thank him for all of his knowledge, his experience and his humour. The sofa won't feel the same without him."
But despite thanking him publicly, Phillip has revealed that he's lost his "best friend".
Since then, news of Phillip's affair with a younger male colleague at ITV has also been widespread, with the 61-year-old admitting he lied to everyone about the relationship - including Holly.
He claims to have reached out to Holly via text message to apologise for lying to her but says he has had no response from her.
Holly has released a statement on the situation, saying that she felt "hurt" that she had been lied to.
She said: "When reports of this relationship first surfaced, I asked Phil directly if this was true and was told it was not.
"It's been very hurtful to now find out that this was a lie."
ITV bosses also said that they felt they had been "badly let down" by the presenter.
Speaking about his affair, he explained his friendship with the colleague started when the man was 20.
The pair first met when the other man was 15 and Phillip was paying a visit to his drama school.
Phillip explained his relationship with his younger colleague became more than just friends after a "consensual moment" in his dressing room in 2017.
He insists he did "not groom" the younger colleague at This Morning that he had an affair with.
Holly, who is currently on holiday in Portugal with her family, is due to return to This Morning on Monday.
Following Phillip's exit, he will now be replaced by Josie Gibson as co-host with her on the sofa.
Meanwhile, the ashamed former presenter has admitted that he doesn't know what will come next for him as he "doesn't see a future" for himself.
"I have to talk about television in the past tense, which breaks my heart. I have lost everything," he told the BBC. "If I get through this I don't know how I move forward. What am I going to do with my days?"
"I see nothing ahead of me but blackness and sadness and regret and remorse and guilt. I did something very wrong and then I lied about it consistently... consistently lied about. You can't live with that. How do you live with that?"
