Carolyn Maccall: Celebs Rumors

ITV boss Dame Carolyn McCall said the broadcaster does not recognise allegations of a toxic culture at This Morning and reiterated claims "deeply disappoint" her. The chief executive faced questions from MPs alongside ITV managing director Kevin Lygo and general counsel and company secretary Kyla Mullins about former host Phillip Schofield 's shock exit during Wednesday morning's Culture, Media and Sport Committee session in Parliament.

ITV boss Dame Carolyn McCall will appear before a parliamentary committee to answer questions about the broadcaster’s approach to safeguarding and complaint handling after former employee Phillip Schofield’s exit from This Morning.

K.J. Yossman ITV boss Carolyn McCall said former “This Morning” anchor Phillip Schofield’s relationship with a young runner on this show was “deeply inappropriate.” McCall was appearing before a U.K. Culture Media and Sport Committee (CMS) parliamentary inquiry on the working culture and duty of care at ITV following the controversy around Schofield and his time on the long-running daytime show. McCall was joined by ITV’s MD for media and entertainment Kevin Lygo and general counsel Kyla Mullins. Mullins detailed the company’s investigation of the affair, telling the CMS committee the runner – who is being referred to during proceedings as “Person X” – was asked by ITV 12 times about his relationship with Schofield and denied it each time. She said Schofield also repeatedly denied the claims until he resigned last month.

The boss of ITV has confirmed that the broadcaster is funding Phillip Schofield's counselling after he requested the help after he resigned from ITV and was dropped by his talent agency YMU after admitting to an "unwise but not illegal" affair with a younger male colleague.

“Imbalances of power are dangerous and we care about them,” BBC Director General Tim Davie said today, as he was questioned on the Phillip Schofield debate and accusations of toxicity on This Morning.

It’s the story that everyone’s talking about, and while it started with Phillip Schofield’s shock departure from This Morning, the focus has now fallen on the ITV network itself, with one disgruntled star after another stepping forward to blast the alleged “toxic” culture. “Shaken” and “worried” were the words used by Holly Willoughby to describe her feelings when she addressed the nation on This Morning last Monday.

K.J. Yossman Embattled daytime show “This Morning” is advertising for a new producer. The job, which pays £40,000 to £50,000 per year, is unrelated to the recent fall-out from the Phillip Schofield scandal. “It’s to replace someone who was promoted and has been live for some weeks,” says a source. ITV is looking for a producer who “thrives on the buzz” of live television and has an “abundance of ideas” to support anchor Holly Willoughby and guest hosts including Dermot O’Leary and Alison Hammond, according to the job description, which is currently live on LinkedIn. “This Morning” was rocked by the resignation of Willoughby’s longtime co-host Phillip Schofield last month, following tension between the two anchors. Schofield subsequently revealed that he had had an affair with a young runner on the show, whom he’d known since the runner was a teenager.

X Factor runner up, Rebecca Ferguson, has launched a scathing account of initial exploitation, “abuse of power”, and subsequent legal challenges with ITV. Ferguson, who came second in 2010 and went on to release four top 10 albums, claims to have broken NDAs by taking to Twitter to recount the “terrible foul play” at the broadcaster. In an email to Ofcom, Ferguson claimed on Twitter that X Factor contestants were “forced into contracts without independent legal advice .

Carolyn McCall is embroiled in scandal following Phillip Schofield’s exit from This Morning as she faces further questions from public and MPsHolly Willoughby and the crew of This Morning are looking for a new chapter of ‘warmth and magic’ following Phillip Schofield’s scandal; something ITV boss Carolyn McCall can only dream of for herself after she has come under further scrutiny for the broadcaster’s handling of certain situations. In the wake of Phil Schofield leaving the ITV show after more than 20 years when reports came to light about his alleged affair with a younger male colleague, all eyes turned to Dame Carolyn McCall to not only see how much the CEO might have known but also her approach to complaint handling and safeguarding as a result.

Naman Ramachandran A U.K. parliamentary inquiry that convened to gather evidence for the upcoming media bill pulled no punches, with top TV executives being probed on Tuesday. Though the proceedings began with the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee chair Caroline Dinenage stating that the session was not about the “widely reported issues” at ITV show “This Morning,” committee members ploughed on nevertheless. (ITV CEO Carolyn McCall has been called to give evidence to the committee next week over an affair between former ITV anchor Phillip Schofield and a young employee.) Appearing before the committee, Magnus Brooke, group director of strategy, policy and regulation at ITV, was asked about the duty of care that the editorial team and senior managers provide to staff, especially young staff, at “This Morning” and ITV in general. In response, Brooke said: “There’s a very sophisticated and significant system of safeguarding and duty of care at ITV, with a very significant set of policies.”

Disgraced British TV presenter Phillip Schofield has spent another week in the headlines, following his departure from ITV’s flagship daytime show This Morning and his admission that he had a secret relationship with a runner on the show 40 years his junior. 

Martin Frizell, the Editor of embattled ITV daytime show This Morning, has been rebuked by his employer for “extremely ill-judged” remarks about eggplants when questioned over the Phillip Schofield scandal.

K.J. Yossman “This Morning” anchor Holly Willoughby has returned to the show after a two-week absence following the resignation of her long-time co-host Phillip Schofield. She was joined by guest anchor Josie Gibson. Willoughby began the show by addressing the controversy that has been swirling over the last few weeks, ever since Schofield, who is married with two children, admitted he had had an affair with a young “This Morning” employee. “Firstly, are you OK? I hope so,” Willoughby told viewers. “It feels very strange indeed sitting here without Phil. And I imagine you might be feeling a lot like I have: shaken, troubled, let down. Worried for the wellbeing on all sides of what’s been going up. And full of questions. You, me and all of us at ‘This Morning’ gave our love and support to someone who was not telling the truth, who acted in a way that they themselves felt like they had to resign from ITV and step down from a career that they loved.”

Phillip Schofield has broken his silence and revealed his sadness over the reports and rumours circulating about him after admitting to an affair with a much younger man while still married to his wife. Particularly keen to clarify the timeline of events, he revealed in a new interview that he first met the man when he visited the theatre academy he was a patron of.The man began working as a runner on This Morning in 2016 after receiving career advice from Phil and doing work experience at the show in 2015.

Good afternoon Insiders, Max Goldbart here bringing you a rundown of all the biggest headlines and analysis from the international film and TV universe. Read on. 

Philip Schofield has slammed accusations of 'toxicity' at This Morning, and strenuously denied he is a bully, following his affair revelations.The show’s former resident doctor, Dr Ranj Singh, hit out at a “toxic” culture at the flagship ITV daytime show, saying he raised concerns about “bullying and discrimination” two years ago when he worked there – and afterwards felt like he was “managed out” for whistleblowing. Former This Morning presenter Eamon Holmes also told GB News this week that "the toxicity is you", referring to Phillip, and criticising his "controlling, coercive behaviour." In a letter on Wednesday, ITV boss Dame Carolyn McCall said that an external review conducted following a complaint made by Dr Ranj found “no evidence of bullying or discrimination”.

In a shock tell-all interview just days after resigning from ITV’s This Morning, Phillip Schofield has said he did not “abuse his power” when having an affair with a much younger runner, and that he “sees nothing ahead but blackness.”

ITV boss Carolyn McCall will face a grilling from the UK’s influential Culture, Media and Sport Committee (CMS) next week over the Phillip Schofield scandal.

K.J. Yossman ITV CEO Carolyn McCall has been asked to give evidence to the Parliamentary committee for Culture, Media and Sport (CMS) over an affair between former ITV anchor Phillip Schofield and a young employee. The CMS Committee requested McCall’s presence in a letter published today. Read the full letter below: Thank you for your letter of 31 May 2023 setting out ITV’s response to the reports of a relationship between Phillip Schofield and a young employee on the This Morning programme.The Committee regards the media industry’s duty of care towards its staff a matter of the highest importance. Whilst the recent coverage focuses on the Schofield case, it also raises fundamental issues about safeguarding and complaint handling both at ITV and more widely across the media. These issues should, particularly in the case of Public Service Broadcasters, be open to scrutiny.The public must have confidence in the robustness of Public Service Broadcasters’ safeguarding procedures. Whilst these are issues that we want to discuss first with ITV, we will also consider them in our regular scrutiny sessions with other Public Service Broadcasters, including the BBC later this month and Channel 4 later in the year.With this in mind, we look forward to meeting with you at 10am on Wednesday 14th June so that we can raise these issues with you directly. This will enable the session previously scheduled with ITV and other commercial Public Service Broadcasters on 6th June to focus on its intended purpose of scrutinising the Government’s draft Media Bill.It is incumbent upon all media organisations to demonstrate how seriously they take their responsibilities and your appearance before the Committee will enable ITV to do so.

ITV has hired a leading employment lawyer to conduct an investigation into Phillip Schofield's departure from This Morning, and the scandal that followed his admittance to an "unwise but not illegal" affair with a much younger colleague. A letter from ITV chief executive Dame Carolyn McCall to the head of Ofcom and Lucy Frazer, the Culture Secretary, obtained by the PA news agency, sees Carolyn write that Jane Mulcahy KC will "carry out an external review of the facts." It comes after ITV revealed it had investigated rumours of the relationship three years ago but was lied to by Phillip and didn't find any evidence of a relationship "beyond hearsay and rumour." Here is the letter from Dame Carolyn McCall to Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer, DCMS Committee chairwoman, Dame Caroline Dinenage, and Ofcom chief executive, Dame Melanie Dawes, in full: "Dear Lucy, Dame Caroline, and Dame Melanie, "You will have seen the significant media coverage concerning Phillip Schofield.

ITV said it has instructed a barrister to carry out an external review of the facts following Phillip Schofield’s statement and departure from This Morning.

ITV bosses face further questions about what they knew of Phillip Schofield’s affair with a This Morning colleague after claims emerged that the younger lover received a financial settlement from the broadcaster. The Daily Mail has been told that he was given a payment following the end of the on-off relationship, which Schofield described as ‘unwise but not illegal’. ITV have repeatedly declined to comment on the alleged pay-off or deny it.

This Morning has come under fire following Phillip Schofield’s confession that he lied about his affair with a younger male colleague - and we want to know what YOU think. ITV chiefs are battling to save the breakfast show amid fears it has been “tarnished beyond repair” by Schofield’s shocking confession on Friday.

K.J. Yossman The heads of Britain’s four main public service broadcasters gave their verdicts on the current industry climate and the future of PSBs at the Deloitte and Enders Media and Telecoms conference in London on Thursday afternoon. The BBC’s director general Tim Davie, ITV CEO Carolyn McCall, Channel 4 CEO Alex Mahon and Maria Kyriacou, Paramount Global’s president of international broadcast and studios (which oversees Channel 5), spoke on a variety of topics including the Media Bill, digital supremacy and even slug sex. Read on for some more highlights from the panel:

“I am not in this job to simply defend an institution,” BBC Director General Tim Davie declared this afternoon, as he attempted to get the corporation back on the front foot following a tricky few months.

ITV’s digital business is starting to build. The UK network’s revenue from the segment was up £24M ($30.2M) to £106M in the first quarter of 2022 on a year-on-year comparison, a 49% uptick.

MBC Readies Arab ‘Million Dollar Island’

Jeremy Clarkson has denied that he’s been “sacked” as host of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?ITV boss Carolyn McCall recently confirmed to Variety the channel has “no future commitments” with Clarkson beyond the quiz show’s next series, indicating it could be the presenter’s last.“We have a contract. We’re contracted to this [season], so we will do that,” said McCall.

Naman Ramachandran Kevin Lygo, managing director, media and entertainment at ITV, has revealed what he thinks are the key ingredients to the success of the upcoming revival of “Big Brother” on the U.K. commercial broadcaster this fall. The British version of the iconic reality TV series is set to return to screens this year after what will be a five-year hiatus on network ITV2 and streaming platform ITVX. From its launch in 2000 until 2010 the show aired on Channel 4 before moving to Channel 5 in 2011. It ran there for seven years until Channel 5 finally retired the format in 2018.  Speaking to the media during an earnings call after ITV declared its 2022 financial results, Lygo said: “The key to ‘Big Brother’ is to keep it like it was in its golden period – to have it more interesting, intelligent, upmarket etc. than other reality shows. It’s a great addition to have in the autumn [fall] period.”

Jeremy Clarkson’s “awful” comments about Meghan Markle have had “no washover onto the ITV brand,” according to CEO Carolyn McCall.

ITV’s profits slid by more than 12% last year reflecting “planned investment in content and ITVX,” according to the network.

Jeremy Clarkson has addressed the rumours that he's reportedly split from his girlfriend Lisa Hogan and been axed as the host of ITV quiz show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. The Clarkson's Farm host, 62, shared his thanks for fans after receiving an influx of caring messages across his social media. It comes following the news today (Wednesday 1 March) that revealed the ITV quiz show will only be running for one more season.

Jeremy Clarkson won’t be returning for “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” after the latest season following the controversy surrounding his comments about Meghan Markle.

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire will no longer be presented by Jeremy Clarkson after one final season, ITV bosses confirmed.

ITV has officially scrapped Jeremy Clarkson as the host of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire – in the wake of comments he made regarding the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle earlier this year.The network’s boss Carolyn McCall has now confirmed the forthcoming season of the popular quiz show, which is currently in production, will be the final series to be hosted by the former Top Gear star. “We have a contract. We’re contracted to this [season], so we will do that,” said McCall.

K.J. Yossman ITV Studios – the parent company behind labels including Blumhouse Television and Tomorrow Studios – is not for sale, ITV boss Carolyn McCall has categorically told Variety. Rumors began floating last fall that McCall, who has been at the helm of ITV since 2018, was considering selling off the conglomerate or potentially parceling some of it off. But in an interview with Variety McCall put paid to that idea. “We don’t really comment on speculation but I will say ITV Studios is not for sale,” McCall said. “We’re an integrated producer-broadcaster so the benefits of that integration are very – it’s very important to Studios, but it’s also very important to the network.”