This Morning won the award for Best Daytime Show at the National Television Awards for the 18th year running on Thursday night.
Yet, the NTA win was overshadowed by fans dragging up old rivalry rumours as they speculated over tension between presenters Ruth Langsford and Phillip Schofield as they joined the This Morning team onstage to accept this year’s gong.
During the live ceremony, Phillip had delivered a heartfelt speech thanking fans for their continued support, with fans flocking to Twitter and commenting on the ‘obvious disdain’ Ruth appeared to show towards her co-star while stood next to him.
‘Obvious disdain’: This Morning fans were seen rehashing old feud rumours between Ruth Langsford and Phillip Schofield as they claimed there was tension between the pair during Thursday night’s National Television Awards
Phil took centre stage, with his co-host Holly Willoughby stood on one side of him and fellow presenters Ruth and her husband Eamonn Holmes on the other.
As he spoke, fans claimed to pick up on tension between Phil and Ruth, as they addressed previous reports of a feud between the pair that surfaced last year.
Ruth could be seen politely smiling as Phil delivered his speech, thanking his ‘best friend’ Holly before Holly then took over and addressed the rest of the show’s presenters.
Having their say, one fan claimed: ‘Ruth clearly doesn’t like Phil.’
Tension? Ruth was seen politely smiling and applauding as Phil and Holly took centre stage
Another agreed as they tweeted on the night: ‘It’s quite clear that the Ruth and Phil rivalry lives on and I am THRILLED #NTAs.’
A third joked: ‘Ruth and Phil pretending they don’t hate each other every year check.’
While a fourth posted: ‘I can’t help but love Ruth’s obvious disdain for holly and phil’s lovey dovey stuff. What a queen #NTAs #thismorning.’
Another fan was seen encouraging Ruth to make a speech as well as co-star Phil, as they shared: ‘Ruth you should of owned that mic, an amazing presenter for This Morning, I love Phil & Holly but there are other presenters on that show too. Just showing the love (sic).’
‘The rivalry lives on’: Fans claimed Ruth was showing ‘obvious disdain’ towards co-star Phil as they watched the This Morning team pick up their NTAs award live on air
MailOnline has reached out to a representative for Ruth for comment.
This Morning beat the likes of Loose Women, The Chase and The Repair Shop to bag the award for Best Daytime Show for the 18th consecutive year running.
Accepting the gong, Phil praised the team behind This Morning, especially for keeping the show on air during lockdown, as he said: ‘We are always massively, massively proud of This Morning and our family and our team.
‘What was amazing for us was, every single day, because of the brilliance of ITV, we could stay on air and we could be there. We felt like we were everyone’s comfort blankets, but for all of us, you were our comfort blankets too.’
‘Thank you for that, thank you for being there with us and also thank you to my best friend,’ he said, as he handed the award to co-host Holly.
Success: Ruth was seen posing backstage with Phil after This Morning’s win as the team celebrated together (pictured: Eamonn Holmes, Ruth, Phil, Holly Willoughby, Rochelle Humes and Dr Zoe Williams)
Stealing the show: Hours earlier, Ruth was in high spirits as she made her way along the red carpet with husband Eamonn ahead of the star-studded ceremony
Holly then made sure to point out the other presenters on the show, including Alison Hammond, Dermot O’Leary, Ruth and Eamonn and Rochelle Humes, as she said: ‘This Morning is an incredible team, and we are lucky to just be one cog in the wheel.
‘We just wanted to give you a normal morning, thank you for voting, it means the absolute world.’
Last year, it was reported Ruth had made a formal complaint against Phil after the presenter interrupted her while she was presenting a preview for Loose Women via a video link.
Phil was accused of creating a ‘toxic atmosphere’ for his This Morning co-stars, with allegations of ongoing spats with Holly and stand-in hosts Ruth and Eamonn.
‘My best friend’: Phil had thanked his co-host Holly while delivering a heartfelt speech on the night, with Holly then taking over and addressing the rest of the show’s presenters
Tough time: Last year, Phil was accused of creating a ‘toxic’ backstage environment at This Morning and it was reported Ruth had filed a formal complaint against him
It was claimed eight different ITV presenters broke their silence regarding Phil’s attitude, while Ruth is thought to have made a formal complaint to ITV’s new head of daytime TV Emma Gormley.
A spokesperson for ITV said at the time: ‘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.’
Sources at the time, meanwhile, claimed: ‘Phil’s relationship with Ruth and Eamonn is hugely strained and at ITV they give each other a wide berth.’
Feud: Ruth allegedly took action against Phil after he interrupted her during a live video-link on This Morning, where she had been introducing Loose Women
Backlash: ITV spoke out about the claims against Phil at the time and brandished the allegations ‘malicious gossip’ (pictured above This Morning team in a lift at the NTAs)
At last year’s NTAs, Phil and Ruth were seen putting on a united front as he gestured to Ruth to make a speech on stage, following This Morning’s 2020 win.
Months following the January awards, an intimate moment between Ruth and Phil onscreen, after he came out as gay live on air, suggested the alleged feud between the pair had thawed.
Following the emotional interview, that saw Phil open up on his sexuality for the first time, Ruth was seen embracing the star and asking him if he ‘felt better’ for finally sharing his truth.
Phil revealed in the interview, conducted by Holly, that he was getting to the stage where he ‘no longer liked himself’.
Moments before the show aired, Phil shared a lengthy statement to Instagram, which read: ‘You never know what’s going on in someone’s seemingly perfect life, what issues they are struggling with, or the state of their wellbeing – and so you won’t know what he has been consuming me for the last few years.
‘With the strength and support of my wife and my daughters, I have been coming to terms with the fact that I am gay.’
Phil has been married to his wife Stephanie Lowe for 27 years and they share daughters Ruby, 24, and Molly, 27.
Celebrating: TV presenter Phil was seen holding This Morning’s award as the show picked up the Best Daytime Show gong for the 18th year running