Phillip Schofield tells how 'dark' life got and support from ill mum in emotional TV return

Phillip Schofield has reflected on how "dark" his life became and how his daughters helped him "take a step back from the edge" as he returns to television for the first time in over a year.

The scandal-hit star is making his TV comeback on the brand-new three-part Channel 5 series next week. The three-part series, which begins on Monday (September 30). It is his first appearance on a TV series since he left ITV in May 2023 after he admitted to an “unwise but not illegal” affair with a younger male colleague.

Phillip Schofield: Cast Away will see the 62-year-old marooned on a desert island off the coast of Madagascar for 10 days armed with nothing but camera gear and a lip balm, following his absence from the limelight.

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Following his arrival at the small island of Nosy Ankarea, Phillip reflects on how the survivalist experience is helping to empty what he calls his "toxicity tanks". He says he wants people to “bugger off and let me get on with the quiet life that you’ve all given me”, and then reflects on how "dark" things became.

Phillip, who had presented This Morning alongside Holly Willoughby from 2009 until his exit, appears to hint in the first episode that he considered suicide, as he talks about how when his daughters, Ruby and Molly, were looking after him.

Speaking alone to camera, on the island, he says when he was in the media storm, he "got so, so close, I had everything in place, everything was set up and everything was ready".

He added: “Molly said, ‘Do you imagine what this would do to us if you actually managed to pull this off? Imagine what would happen. Can you imagine what it