One of the reasons Eamonn Holmes reportedly lost his job on This Morning was due to the show’s boss Martin Frizell and his apparent “dislike for the way he [Eamonn] ate on TV”.
The suggestion came from a source close to Phillip Schofield who told The Sun while falling ratings also contributed – there was also a very specific problem.
Holmes’ former colleague Schofield has recent made his return to mainstream TV with his new three-part series Cast Away, filmed on a remote island in the Indian Ocean.
It marks his first TV project since his departure from ITV over 16 months ago after admitting to an affair with a young male runner on This Morning.
The Belfast GB News presenter and Ruth Langsford – who announced their split after 14 years of marriage – had anchored the This Morning Friday segment before they lost their slot in a show shake-up in late 2020.
According to The Sun, the pal close to Schofield said: “Eamonn and Ruth leaving was all down to ratings – and because Martin joked that he couldn’t bear to watch him eat on TV.
“Chefs do cooking segments on This Morning and Martin’s dislike of the sight of Eamonn chomping on whatever had been cooked up became a joke that he shared among people working on the show.
“Ruth was a delight and was loved by the team. Eamonn was not as popular.”
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After being replaced by Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary This Morning on Fridays, Eamonn went on to quit ITV a year later and moved to GB News.
Previously, Eamonn has been outspoken about his frustration with ITV, adding: “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.”
Meanwhile, more details have emerged in recent days about the relationship between the Northern Irish presenter and his former ITV colleague, with friends of Schofield telling The Mirror they feel the Belfast man has a “personal vendetta” against him.
They added: “[Eamonn is] consumed with jealousy that Friday rated poorly compared to the rest of the week.”
They also claimed that Eamonn was furious that Schofield never messaged him after being let go by ITV, adding: “The truth is that Phillip wishes he did message him but bigger things were happening in his life and stroking his ego wasn’t one of them.”
Last month Holmes reignited his feud with his former This Morning colleague, saying that if he was one of those who threw him “under the bus”, he was “very proud” to have done so.
“This man is addicted to fame, absolutely addicted to fame,” added Holmes on GB News several weeks ago.
“Well, if I’m one of the people who threw him under the bus, I’m very proud to have done it.”
The pair’s feud dates back to 2019 when Holmes’ now-estranged wife and This Morning co-host Ruth Langsford filed an official complaint against Schofield.
While working on Loose Women, Langsford was snubbed by Schofield when she was cut off mid-link while explaining what was coming up on the show during a segment on This Morning.