Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield were forced to apologise to This Morning viewers on Monday morning after reality TV star Joey Essex accidently swore on-air. The 26-year-old didn't realise his microphone had been left on when he was heard complaining backstage. When the cameras cut back to Gino D'Acampo in the kitchen, viewers could still hear Joey's foulmouthed outburst – to which Phillip remarked: "Can we still hear Joey Essex chatting away?"
Holly, 36, apologised to viewers, saying: "If any of you heard something that Joey Essex said that you found offensive we do apologise. He didn't realise his mic was up so we are sorry for that." Phillip then joked: "I didn't know he knew words that big." Joey appeared on the show to talk about the return of Celebs Go Dating where he revealed he was looking for a "brunette" woman who will "understand me".
Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield spoke to Joey Essex on Monday's This Morning
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"Recently, I've been saying Bella Hadid," he explained. "I think it's because she's less famous than her mates." The TV personality added: "I think they need to understand my job, they need to understand that my job is being me, being Joey Essex on TV, and being me in real life. It’s hard to get your head around."
Click here to see Holly and Phillip's most emotional moments of 2016
Monday's episode also marked the return of Holly and Phillip following half term. The mother-of-three opened up about the moment she "rescued" a lost girl on the slopes during her ski break. "She was in front of me and fell over," confessed Holly. "I did get her ski and bring it back and returned her to her family." She later joked with the viewers, calling herself a "ski hero". The girl's father Martin Gouldstone had also reached to Holly to thank her. "Thank you for rescuing my daughter Hatty at skiing this week," he tweeted. "She's just realised it was you and wanted to say thanks!" To which Holly responded, "Pleasure! Hope she found the rest of her group!"