Phillip Schofield holds back tears as Dancing on Ice pays tribute to his momentous coming out
Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby on Dancing on Ice (Twitter)
Phillip Schofield fought tears on last night’s Dancing on Ice as judge Ashley Banjo paid tribute to him for coming out as gay last week.
Schofield, who revealed in an Instagram post on Friday that he is gay, was visibly emotional when the judge praised him for his courage.
“Phil, it’s been a big week, a big, big week,” Banjo said.
Dancing on Ice judge Ashley Banjo praised Phillip Schofield for coming out as gay last week.
“You have always been an absolute legend but never, never ever more so than this week, my friend.”
“I think I speak on behalf of all of us when I say we’ve got nothing but love and respect for you,” he added. Fellow judges John Barrowman, Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean also applauded the This Morning host for his momentous coming out.
Schofield – who co-presents Dancing on Ice with Holly Willoughby – joked: “It’s not about me! It’s not about me,” before they moved on with the competition.
You have always been an absolute legend but never, never ever more so than this week, my friend.
It was revealed ahead of Dancing on Ice last night that celebrity and professional ice skaters were so proud of Schofield that they were planning a backstage toast on the show.
A source told The Sun: “Phillip is a huge part of the Dancing on Ice team and they want him to know they are there for him 100 per cent.
“The cast are ridiculously proud of him. They will definitely be there to support him at the live show on Sunday and raise a glass to him.
“It’s nothing but love and hugs as he is a massive part of the family, so this is major.”
Schofield’s came out on Instagram on Friday.
57-year-old Schofield came out as gay in an Instagram post on Friday ahead of his appearance on This Morning.
“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 has been consuming me for the last few years,” he wrote.
“With the strength and support of my wife and daughters, I have been coming to terms with the fact that I am gay.”
Holly Willoughby, Schofield’s This Morning co-host, was amongst first to pay tribute to the presented.
She said she’d “never been more proud of my friend that I am today”, sharing a picture of the pair to Instagram.
