Amanda Holden appears to have taken a subtle swipe at Phillip Schofield amid their ongoing feud. Following This Morning's triumphant win at the National Television Awards on Tuesday night, Friday presenter Ruth Langsford shared a snap with her co-host Eamonn Holmes, who was holding the award. Underenath the post, Amanda declared the husband-and-wife duo as her "faves".
The post comes weeks after Ruth allegedly made a formal complaint about Phillip's conduct behind the scenes of This Morning - although neither party has ever addressed this. At the time, Heart FM presenter Amanda was asked by co-host Jamie Theakston about the situation. Pussycat Doll Ashley Roberts began the discussion by saying: "Lots of buzz around Phillip Schofield at the moment. There are reports that things are a little tense between him and Holly Willoughby as well as Ruth Langsford. ITV says it's just gossip and that he and Holly are great friends, both on and off-screen."
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Jamie then quipped: "If only there was someone here who might be able to help us with that story..." In response, Amanda replied: "Listen, I've drawn a line under all those issues with Phillip," - before backing Ruth. She said: "Well, I'm just going to say that I really admire anyone that sticks up for themselves because it is not an easy thing to do." The 48-year-old then added: "There is a tin opener and there's a can somewhere and other people have found the tin opener. That's all I'm saying."
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Amanda and Phillip fell out last year, when Holly Willoughby took a break from This Morning to present I'm A Celebrity. It was previously reported that Phillip had "blocked" Amanda's chances of stepping into Holly's place, and instead pushed for Rochelle Humes to be his co-host. Earlier this year, Amanda addressed reports of a rift, telling Jamie, "I've moved on from it, Jamie, you need to move on from it." He replied: "You might have moved on but I just wanted to know, is there any more to the story?"
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"I did offer to meet him for a coffee months ago, he didn't reply to my text. What can I say?" Amanda responded, before Jamie pushed: "The olive branch had been extended", to which she replied: "Oh, yes." Claims about Phillip's conduct have been fiercely denied by ITV and This Morning's editor. In a statement, an ITV spokesperson said: "It's deeply disappointing and unfair for Phillip to be the target of this sort of malicious gossip. Phillip is a much respected broadcaster and colleague and this is absolutely not a description of This Morning that we recognise. Holly and Phil are great friends both on and off screen and are popular among viewers and colleagues alike."
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