The daughter of Phillip Schofield revealed that him coming out on live TV as gay was “hard”, especially for her mother, and it turned their family life “upside down”.
In February 2020, Schofield revealed his sexuality publicly in an emotional chat with his then This Morning co-star Holly Willoughby on the ITV daytime programme.
The former presenter left ITV in 2023, after revealing an affair with a younger colleague, which he said was “unwise but not illegal”, and has since returned to the limelight in the survivalist Channel 5 programme Phillip Schofield: Cast Away.
Phillip Schofield and his wife Stephanie Lowe (Ian West/PA)
Wife Stephanie Lowe, who Schofield has been married to for more than 20 years, appeared in the first episode of the three-part series, with their two grown-up daughters, enjoying a BBQ in the garden before he sets off for a tropical island off the coast of Madagascar.
While speaking on the show, Schofield admitted that coming out later in life has given him “more anguish than joy because I’m fully aware of the damage that it leaves”.
He also praised his family for never having “wavered” in their support of him.
His daughter Molly Schofield also gave an interview about her reaction on the Channel 5 show, saying: “When my dad came out, it was… very hard for me, it was very hard for the entire family – mainly my mum, of course – everything was turned upside down.
“But we talked through it, and over time it’s got easier.
“You know, my mum, my sister (Ruby), we’re all the same, we will always continue to support him no matter what,” she added.
“And I never thought it would have gone the way it has. But to have my parents still best friends is just… I’m the luckiest person ever.”
She also appeared to refer to the media storm over his affair, and said this has “made us closer”.
Molly also said: “We’ve seen him in his lowest times, but I’ve been so proud of him, so proud of him, and as a daughter to see the love that people had for him… taken away, it’s just heartbreaking.”
She also hoped that the desert island experience, where “you can’t fake it”, will give the public the opportunity to “see him, how we see him, because he is just amazing”.
During the BBQ segment, Ms Lowe also told Schofield: “What people don’t realise is that they batter you, but then there are other people affected.”
Molly with Phillip Schofield (Ian West/PA)
She also said: “There’s no question by doing this, you’re popping your head back up above the parapet for the very few horrid people that there are out there.”
Schofield responded, saying that “there’ll be a lot of people, who would hope that I suffer horribly”.
His younger daughter, Ruby, who spoke briefly, asked if he is going to miss the family more or the dog.
Schofield says: “That’s the hardest thing, not having you guys at the end of the phone or just popping around, that will be very hard.”
He has previously praised his daughters Ruby and Molly for “guarding him”, when he was feeling “numbness” after admitting to the affair last year, and being dropped by his talent agency.
Phillip Schofield: Cast Away airs at 9pm on Monday on Channel 5, and will continue on Tuesday and Wednesday at the same time.