Phillip Schofield's wife Stephanie shares fears ahead of his dramatic TV return

Former ITV star Phillip Schofield recently announced his return to TV after bagging a stint on Channel 5's Cast Away

Former This Morning star Phillip Schofield's wife Stephanie shared her fears about the star returning to screens.

He was last seen on screens early last year presenting the ITV programme with Holly Willoughby. He sensationally quit his role at ITV after admitting to an "unwise but not illegal" affair with a much younger male colleague. After the scandal emerged, he stepped from all of his public-facing jobs.

However, 16 months after the scandal came out, he decided to start secretly filming for Channel 5's Cast Away. In the programme, viewers will see a dishevelled Schofield stranded on a tropical island for 10 days. He will discuss the past two years of his life while on this island.

After the announcement, his wife Stephanie, who stayed friends with him through everything, shared her fears about it. She said: "What people don't realise is that they batter you but then there are other people affected. 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."

Phillip, 62, came out as gay in February 2020 but whilst on the desert Island he admits it was not as freeing for him as it can be for some people and came with its own problems. He explained: "I'm very proud of what I did, and I know that coming out for many people is liberating....but for me doing it later in life, at the moment it's just given me more anguish than joy because I am fully aware of the damage that is leaves."

His daughter Molly also shared her support for the star and admitted everything that happened in the last year brought the family "closer" together. She said they have seen him at "his lowest times" and added that she is "so proud of him". She explained: "And as a daughter to see the love that people had for him that when it's taken away it's just heartbreaking."

In the trailer for his divisive return, Phillip is seen wandering across a deserted beach wearing a white shirt, beige shorts and a hat. Captions along the video read: "One celebrity. On a desert island. Totally alone. With one chance to finally tell his story." Phillip's former This Morning colleague Josie Gibson was among the 500 people who had liked the clip.

Taking to the comments, one fan said: "Philip Schofield... Good for him!" A second posted: "Schofe's account has just said 9am tomorrow, watch this space… it's got to be an announcement for this, surely!" Meanwhile, a third typed: "Excited." Prior to the news being revealed, Phillip took to social media to share a cryptic comment with fans, saying: "Watch this space," with a winking emoji, teasing that the news would emerge at 9am on Wednesday.

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