All the signs Phillip Schofield will NEVER return to TV again after his controversial appearance on Cast Away

As a seasoned television viewer and critic with decades of watching under my belt, I must say that the current situation surrounding Phillip Schofield is nothing short of intriguing. It seems he has embarked on a comeback with his new show “Cast Away,” but unfortunately, it appears to be more of a “cast away from ratings success.

This week, Philip Schofield reappeared on television screens, taking center stage in the fresh Channel 5 production titled “Cast Away.

The disgraced presenter, 62, secretly filmed a special three part series which required him to give up his home comforts for 10 days of soul-searching on a tropical island in the Indian Ocean, which he described as his ‘story of survival’.

For the first time after his departure from ITV’s This Morning in May 2023, following an admission of a romantic involvement with a significantly younger coworker, he made his television comeback.

Before his shock exit, Schofield had been working in the TV industry for almost 40 years.

After the final episode of Cast Away aired on Wednesday, it seems increasingly probable that we won’t see him back on television anymore.

Here are all the signs he will NEVER return to TV again:

All the signs Phillip Schofield will NEVER return to TV again after his controversial appearance on Cast Away

Says he is ‘bowing out’ of showbusiness

Schofield choked up, admitting that the controversy surrounding his exit from This Morning had left him devastated, during his appearance on the program.

For several months, a controversy grabbed all the attention, ultimately shattering the bond between him and his co-host Holly, leaving his wife Steph in deep sorrow.

2020 marked the year my long-time partner and I parted ways, as he bravely chose to embrace his true identity as a gay man. Despite our separation, we managed to maintain a strong bond of friendship. However, that bond was shattered when an unforgivable act of betrayal surfaced, ultimately leading us to distance ourselves.

A scene from the program featured Schofield shedding tears as he said to the camera, “I understand my actions were not the wisest, but are they sufficient to utterly ruin someone?

With a rumpled appearance, he muttered, “This will surely cause a commotion, Philip Schofield’s passionate outburst [nodding his head].

‘But the thing is, I don’t care anymore. I don’t care. This is me having my say as I bow out.’

In another setting, he sat by the fire, thoughtfully considering the potential future of his career on TV.

He said: ‘Isolation has forced me to revisit the past and come to some big decisions about my future. I don’t think I want to do it any more.

‘Look, I love telly. I’ve got telly in my bones. But I won’t sit on a sofa again, I’m not going to do that again.’

Lack of channels to work with

On a recent episode, Schofield voiced his growing dissatisfaction towards some facets of the industry.

He said: ‘There are some people I won’t work for again, some people I won’t work with again.

Due to my past experiences with television shows like that, I’ve been deeply wounded not only by the content but also by certain individuals within the industry. At times, it leaves me questioning if I even want to continue being involved in it anymore.

Concluding his candid outburst, Phil announced: ‘Mic drop. I quit.’

It is unlikely after what happened on This Morning that he would ever work for ITV again.

Richard Osman and Marina Hyde pointed out that ITV probably wouldn’t want to work with him anyway.

On their podcast The Rest Is Entertainment, Hyde expressed his belief that Kevin Lygo, the head of programming at ITV, might be shedding tears over that particular situation.

Osman added that he wasn’t invited to do I’m A Celeb.

Poor ratings

He had hoped his TV comeback would redeem him.

However, it was Ben Shephard, the new host of This Morning, who emerged victorious in the battle for higher ratings against Schofield.

Contrary to expectations with the extensive marketing effort and airing it during a highly-coveted 9 pm time slot, ITV’s afternoon game show Tipping Point managed to pull in a larger audience than Cast Away on Monday evening.

Aired on Channel 5 at 9pm, Cast Away brought in a peak of 1.5 million viewers.

Meanwhile, ITV’s Tipping Point at 4pm received two million viewers.

On another screen, I found myself tuning into ITV’s The Chase, which drew in approximately 3.1 million viewers, and Coronation Street, captivating an audience of 3.5 million.

ITV’s new drama Joan, starring Sophie Turner, had a peak audience of two million.

In comparison to the BBC, The One Show had 2.8 million viewers and Bargain Hunt, 2.3.

Negative viewer reaction

On Monday evening, spectators labeled Cast Away as “dull” and “awkward” and declared that they “won’t tune in for the upcoming episode.

Taking to X to slam it, one wrote: ‘THIS IS BORING AS HELL #PhillipSchofield.’

‘Well that’s an hour of my life I won’t get back.’

Instead of watching the next installment of the sympathy marathon, it seems unlikely. However, I did enjoy stirring up the supporters of Phillip Schofield for an hour; it was quite entertaining! (Hashtags: #PhillipSchofield #Castaway)

Another wrote: ‘Well that was the most boring hour of television I’ve ever watched on Channel 5 and he is still as annoying as we all already knew. #CastAway #PhillipSchofield.’

‘This #PhillipSchofield thing is insanely cringe,’ another said.

5’s executives are reportedly examining public response and ratings for the latest series, with potential future collaborations with Schofield hinging on these evaluations.

As a devoted admirer, I’ve always been intrigued by the choices made by Schofield. Rather than succumbing to lucrative television deals with generous paychecks, he opted to join the cast of Cast Away instead.

2024-10-03 13:23

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