EAMONN Holmes has hit out at ITV and branded them “sly” over his This Morning axing.
He and wife Ruth Langsford were dropped from their Friday morning slot on the programme in November 2020 after 14 years.
3
The 62-year-old has since joined rival GB News and has now slammed his former bosses and claimed they weren’t truthful with the announcement.
Speaking to the Daily Mail’s Weekend magazine, Eamonn said: “‘No one explained anything to me.
“I’m all for TV companies being able to choose who works for them, but it would be nice if you were told why you were going.
“They’re sly. They didn’t want to announce that I’d been dropped because it would adversely affect audience figures, so they made it look as if I’d walked away from them rather than the other way round.
“They had a chat with my agent and announced that I was going to GB News when they’d done no more than ask if I’d be interested in joining them.”
Eamonn questioned ITV’s diversity drive and accused them of not having the same standards behind the scenes.
Most read in TV
He added: “When are they going to start being diverse with their management? The diversity is only on screen. It’s hypocritical.”
The furious broadcaster also took aim at his former colleague Phillip Schofield.
Addressing Ruth’s rumoured fall-out with Phil after he cut her off during a Loose Women segment in 2019, Eamonn said: “Phillip is renowned for snubbing people.
“He’s very passive-aggressive. It’s up to Ruth to say how she felt, but I was feeling hurt for her. No one would have snubbed me like that.”
An ITV spokesperson told the Daily Mail: “This isn’t a version of events we recognise and as we have said before we wish Eamonn all the very best.
“We are committed to improving representation both on and off screen and we publicly report on our progress against our commitments and targets.”
3
3
