Phillip Schofield gave six-figure sum to younger ex-lover | Ents & Arts News

Phillip Schofield paid a six-figure sum to a younger male colleague he had an affair with, it has emerged, as part of a deal including a non-disclosure agreement.

The substantial payment covered the younger man’s legal costs and also included compensation for the loss of his job and home, lawyers for the TV presenter confirmed.

The arrangement included a mutual non-disclosure agreement.

Having hosted daytime show This Morning for more than 20 years, Schofield quit in May 2023 following reports of a fall-out with his co-star Holly Willoughby.

A week later, he publicly admitted to an “unwise but not illegal” relationship with a former male colleague, and stepped down from ITV altogether.

In December, the results of an external review of his departure from the broadcaster were published, revealing the presenter had “reluctantly declined” to participate as his mental health had “deteriorated”.

The younger man also declined to take part.

Because it was not a statutory inquiry, there was “no power to compel people to co-operate”, the review heard, and all who did so spoke on a voluntarily basis.

Schofield, now 61, told the BBC in an interview last year that the first romantic encounter between the pair happened in his dressing room, and that the man was 20 when they first had any sexual contact.

He said the pair were “not boyfriends” and had five or six romantic encounters over a few months.

The presenter said he understood the affair could be seen as an abuse of power but “that wasn’t how it felt at the time”.

ITV confirmed Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley as the permanent new hosts for This Morning in an announcement last week.