This Morning editor Martin Frizell has said âscores are being settledâ when asked about claims of a toxic work environment at the ITV show.
In the wake of Phillip Schofieldâs resignation after admitting an affair with a younger male colleague, former This Morning employees hit out at the broadcaster criticising the work place culture.
On Saturday, Mr Frizell told Sky News to âread between the linesâ amid claims of toxicity at This Morning.
âI think thereâs some scores being settled,â he said.
The showâs former resident doctor, Dr Ranj Singh, previously hit out at a âtoxicâ culture, saying he raised concerns about âbullying and discriminationâ two years ago when he worked there and afterwards felt like he was âmanaged outâ for whistleblowing.
In a letter from ITV boss Dame Carolyn McCall to parliament on Wednesday, she said an external review conducted following a complaint made by Dr Ranj found âno evidence of bullying or discriminationâ.
Meanwhile Eamonn Holmes, who previously presented This Morning on Fridays with wife Ruth Langsford until 2020, accused Schofield of âtoxicityâ in an interview with Dan Wootton on GB News earlier this week.
It also comes a day after Emily Maddick, who worked as This Morningâs head of news from September to December 2019, claimed she quit the programme due to âbullying, sexism and a toxic culture of fear and intimidationâ.
Writing for Glamour magazine, where she now works, Ms Maddick shared extracts from her 2019 exit interview requested from ITVâs HR department after handing in her resignation, which stated there was a âculture of intimidation at This Morningâ.
In the piece, she also wrote: âDid I experience a toxic atmosphere? Yes. Sexism? Yes. Bullying? Yes. Homophobia? Yes.â
On Saturday, Mr Frizell said: âAll I want to say is, I am working with a fantastic team of mainly women, many mums, a lot of them concerned for their jobs, although weâve told them not to be.
âBut this is the 23rd day now of being on the front page and itâs tiring, they worked all through Covid brilliantly, they worked all through this putting a programme outâŠand I just think they need a bit of respite now.â
His comments come after 61-year-old Schofield said he was afraid to leave the house and feared he would be spat on in the street in a new interview with the Sun newspaper.
He said: âI donât have any spirit. My friends tell me, âIt will get betterâ. It wonât. Not now. Not this one.
âI am getting by hour by hour. I have got my girls and my friends.â
He previously said he had âlost everythingâ after admitting to the affair, and that the fallout had had a âcatastrophic effectâ on his mind during a broadcast interview with BBCâs Amol Rajan.
Schofield, who said he was âutterly broken and ashamedâ but denied he had âgroomedâ the younger man, praised his daughters Ruby and Molly for âguarding himâ.
âLast week, if my daughters hadnât been there then I wouldnât be here. And theyâve guarded me and wonât let me out of their sight, itâs like a weird numbness,â he said.
Referring to the Love Island host who took her own life in February 2020, he added: âI think I understand how Caroline Flack felt.â
Flackâs mother, Christine Flack, told the BBCâs Newsnight programme that Schofield was now ârealising even moreâ what her daughter went through before her death and that they should have been âlooked afterâ by ITV.
During the BBC interview, Schofield also spoke about his friend and This Morning co-presenter Holly Willoughby, confirming she knew nothing of the affair.
Willoughby, who had presented the show alongside Schofield since 2009, is due to return to the show on Monday after the half-term break, having taken an early holiday following Schofieldâs departure.
Alison Hammond and Dermot OâLeary have been among the presenters hosting the programme in recent weeks.
ITV boss Dame Carolyn has been called to a parliamentary committee on June 14 to answer questions about the broadcasterâs approach to safeguarding and complaint handling following Schofieldâs exit.
On Wednesday, she confirmed the broadcaster had instructed barrister Jane Mulcahy KC of Blackstone Chambers to carry out an external review of the facts.
â For anyone who needs help, Samaritans can be contacted for free on 116 123, emailed at jo@samaritans.org, or visit www.samaritans.org to find your nearest branch.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel