Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield seen together for first time as This Morning starts with 'distraction'

Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield have been seen together for the first time since the latter was forced to issue a statement on their friendship. The duo kicked off This Morning on Monday (May 15) against the backdrop of claims their relationship is in tatters behind the scenes.

Holly and Phillip, who have fronted the show together for 14 years, are reportedly 'barely speaking' backstage at the ITV daytime show and it was claimed that Phillip's pre-planned absence from the programme last month around his brother’s sex abuse trial contributed to a "cooling" of their friendship.

But today's show is the first time the pair have been seen together since 61-year-old Phillip issued an unexpected statement in which he defended his relationship with Holly, 42, who he continued to claim is his 'rock'.

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He told The Sun: "As I have said before, Holly is my rock. We’re the best of friends – as always, she is an incredible support on screen, behind the scenes and on the phone. Holly has always been there for me, through thick and thin. And I’ve been there for her." Phillip added: "The last few weeks haven’t been easy for either of us."

Holly and Phillip were all smiles as they appeared live to millions this morning. Lorraine Kelly crossed over to the pair to find out what was coming up on This Morning towards the end of her self-titled talk show. Sitting next to each other with smiles on their faces, the duo shared what fans can expect from the latest episode.

But when This Morning got underway at 10am, the pair were nowhere to be seen. That's because the first edition of the show of the week opened with a performance, The show opened with Disney composer