Phillip Schofield and his much younger ex-lover steal a glance at each other while on stage

This is the moment Phillip Schofield’s younger lover appears by the star’s side on the National Television Awards stage.

In the picture, the young runner can be seen sharing a look with Schofield as the show won an award at the annual ceremony in 2018.

A former This Morning staffer told the Sun it was ‘odd’ to have such a junior worker on stage to accept an award.

As Holly Willoughby, 42, held the trophy and made her speech, Phillip, 61, can be seen looking back at his lover.

Schofield has since admitted he developed a relationship with the young man while he was married to wife Stephanie Lowe.

He has since admitted to developing a relationship with the young man while he was married to wife Stephanie Lowe

A former ITV Daytime production member told The Sun: ‘He was on stage at the NTAs. Usually that’s something that only the presenters and most senior execs get to do.

‘Most crew are either at the back of the arena or even watching the ceremony at another bar. It was all very odd.’

It comes as This Morning fans noticed Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby were missing from the ITV daytime show’s social media pages.

On Twitter, This Morning previously had a banner image on top of the page featuring Schofield and Willoughby as well as Friday presenters Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary.

But now, the page displays a generic background image matching the This Morning profile picture in turquoise and gold. 

None of the presenters is featured on the current banner, adding to previous speculations about who will present This Morning going forward.

LAST WEEK: On Twitter, This Morning previously had a banner image on top of the page featuring Schofield and Willoughby as well as Friday presenters Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary

TODAY: But now, the page displays a generic background image matching the This Morning profile picture in turquoise and gold

Yesterday, former This Morning star Dr Ranj slammed the ‘toxic’ culture at the ITV daytime show.

The TV doctor, who left the show last year, claimed he was ‘managed out’ after taking his concerns to ‘the top’ of ITV, raising even more questions for bosses about whether they knew and when.

Dr Ranj – who is now the resident doctor on the BBC’s Morning Live – said he thought ‘long and hard’ before weighing in on the scandal currently engulfing ITV but decided to speak out ‘in light of recent events’.

But the channel have denied his bombshell accusations amid calls intensify for a independent probe into an ITV investigation by top brass in 2020 into Phillip Schofield’s affair with his secret lover.

ITV confirmed that they had investigated rumours of the relationship, which first began to circulate in 2020, but that Schofield and the young man had ‘repeatedly denied’ the affair. But calls for a probe into ITV’s investigation of the relationship are still continuing to grow. 

On Saturday, broadcaster Dan Wooton revealed that he told ITV about Phillip Schofield’s affair with his young colleague in 2019 and urged them to investigate but they dismissed it as ‘malicious gossip’.

In his exclusive Mail article Wooton also revealed ITV staff submitted complaints about Schofield’s behaviour.

The banner change comes following Schofield’s departure from ITV and after he admitted to having an ‘unwise’ affair with a younger male colleague (pictured: Phillip Schofield with fellow younger colleague who became his lover leaving The Ivy Club, London, in 2017)

Yesterday, former This Morning star Dr Ranj slammed the ‘toxic’ culture at the ITV daytime show (pictured: Dr Ranj speaking with Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby in 2019)

ITV confirmed that they had investigated rumours of the relationship, which first began to circulate in 2020, but that Schofield and the young man had ‘repeatedly denied’ the affair. But calls for a probe into ITV’s investigation of the relationship are still continuing to grow 

Kevin Lygo (pictured), director of television at ITV, denied yesterday that mistakes were made during the network’s investigation

Kevin Lygo, director of television at ITV, denied yesterday that mistakes were made during the network’s investigation. 

He simply responded ‘No’ when asked whether mistakes had been made as he was confronted by Sky News over which bosses knew what at ITV.

The scandal over the affair follows a turbulent few months for Schofield, who for decades was ITV’s king of daytime television. 

But nine days ago he sensationally quit This Morning after 21 years after falling out with Ms Willoughby, 42. His departure came just a day after his younger brother Timothy was jailed for 12 years for 11 convictions of sexual offences involving a child.

Schofield was forced to confirm allegations of an affair were true because his former lover – who had also worked on This Morning – had unexpectedly confessed all to his lawyers. 

The presenter had hired top law firm Mishcon de Reya to represent the young man, now in his mid 20s, presumably believing that he would keep quiet.

But his former lover told lawyers that although he feared exposure, he was fed up lying about the relationship.

Although ITV investigated Schofield’s affair in 2020, a senior lawyer has said there should be a ‘probe’ into the affair over a possible ‘abuse of power’.