Phillip Schofield enjoyed a drink at a London pub on Sunday, two months after leaving This Morning following his affair scandal.
The former ITV star, 61, was seen sipping on a Bloody Mary cocktail and enjoying a burger at The Weir Bar in Brentford.
It is one of the few times Phillip has been seen publicly since his dramatic resignation from the broadcaster in May after admitting to an ‘unwise but not illegal’ affair with a much younger male colleague.
Since standing down from his role, Schofield has become something of a recluse, spending much of his time in Newquay, Cornwall with his 87-year-old mother Pat.
He also recently announced he had become too frightened to step outside fearing he would be ‘spat on.’
Family time: Phillip Schofield enjoyed a drink on Sunday, two months after leaving This Morning following his affair scandal
Drink: The former ITV star, 61, was seen sipping on a Bloody Mary cocktail at The Weir Bar in Brentford
However while out and about in Hounslow on Sunday Phillip looked relaxed while seated on a bench in the outside drinking area.
It comes as friends of Phillip have said that his working life was now ‘over’ following his admission that he had an affair with a much younger colleague and then lied about it.
One told MailOnline: ‘Phillip has been very, very down recently. He doesn’t know how he is going to work again.
‘He is pretty sure that he is done. He keeps saying he will never work again. It’s devastating for him to realise but he also knows that there is not a lot he can do about it.
‘He doesn’t know who will take him, he knows there is no way back to ITV or the BBC.’
Sources close to Schofield say that his circle of friends are trying to encourage him to think that he can have a ‘fulfilling life’ away from showbusiness.
Another added: ‘Just because he may not be on telly again doesn’t mean he can’t enjoy his life. Phil isn’t so sure though.’
There were rumours earlier in the summer that Schofield was being lined up to rebuild his career on TalkTV, but his lawyers quickly shut these claims down, stating that he was ‘absolutely not’ joining the channel as far as he was aware.
Difficult: It is one of the few times Phillip has been seen publicly since his dramatic resignation from the broadcaster in May after admitting to an ‘unwise but not illegal’ affair with a much younger male colleague
Catch up: However while out and about on Sunday Phillip looked relaxed on a bench in the outside drinking area
Out and about: He wore a smart white shirt as he chatted away over the weekend
Schofield had been involved in the tryst for years, keeping it secret until he admitted to The Mail on Sunday that he had lied about the affair just being rumours.
He went on to confess he had misled his employer, his colleagues, his friends and his agents at the management firm YMU, who dropped him as a result.
When he broke his silence after leaving the show he insisted he had not ‘groomed’ the man, despite first meeting him when he was 15.
And he went on to declare: ‘Attraction is attraction. It’s no different in the gay world as it is in the heterosexual world or in the lesbian world.
‘There shouldn’t be a difference. This is where homophobia comes in. We did first meet when he was 15, I visited the drama school [he attended].
‘So yeah, there’s a difference. It’s accepted by Leonardo DiCaprio, it’s not accepted if it’s in the gay world.’
The former ITV personality went on to address his fears of going out in public, worrying he would receive verbal abuse or be spat on.
He said: ‘I do not know a time I will be able to walk out of the door.
‘I don’t have any spirit. My friends tell me, “It will get better”. It won’t. Not now. Not this one.
‘You watch all these layers of you slide away and slide away and slide away. The things that were dear to you. But I deserve it. It’s my fault. I deserve it.’
He said he would never use social media again following the dramatic fallout.
Last week it was revealed that Schofield had reduced the asking price of his £1.2million west London flat that he bought with his wife.
The luxurious bolthole, just a stones throw away from Television Central in White City where his morning show was filmed, became a place where Schofield would take his younger lover for ‘playtime’ on Thursdays, it was claimed earlier this year.
The immaculate two-bedroom flat, which is part of a gated community, has had its value slashed by £85,000.
It follows Schofield and his estranged wife Stephanie, 59, already reducing the property’s asking price £100,000, making it lower than the price they paid for it in 2012.
The flat is said to be in ‘very good condition’ and is the ‘perfect setting for entertaining’.
When Schofield stepped down from his role there were fears that This Morning could be axed all together.
And these concerns only grew when his co-presenter of 13 years Holly Willoughby disappeared on holiday without saying goodbye to viewers.
But sources have since confirmed that the 42-year-old is far from quitting, instead being set to sign a lucrative new contract – and save the show.
They confirmed that Willoughby will be back as planned in September, despite employees behind-the-scenes fear she was ‘quietly quitting’.
Tough: It comes as friends of Phillip have said that his working life was now ‘over’ following his admission that he had an affair with a much younger colleague and then lied about it
Private: Neither of Phillip’s daughters has commented on his affair with the much younger This Morning showrunner (pictured with Molly Schofield in 2022)
Together: Phillip and Stephanie Lowe married in 1997 and raised two daughters together until their split in 2020
Change: The former ITV star has become much of a recluse since he stood down from his role after admitting to lying about an affair with a much younger colleague (pictured with Holly on This Morning in May)
Stepping away from the storm, Willoughby spent her summer break jetting off to Cornwall and Portugal with her husband Dan Baldwin and children Harry, 14, Belle, 12, and Chester, eight.
She has spent much of her two-month break on the Iberian peninsula, soaking up the sun at a £2million mansion.
The star made a number of appearances putting on a brave face on the Algarve, shopping in a beautiful yellow dress, having a dip in the sea and hanging out with her family.
She also celebrated her 16th anniversary with her husband on the beach, giving her Instagram followers a rare insight into her marriage and hinting that he’s helped her heal from the difficulty of the last year.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-12402331/Phillip-Schofield-enjoys-drink-London-pub-two-months-leaving-Morning-affair-scandal.html
