People think Phillip Schofield made ‘cheeky dig’ at Holly Willoughby in his TV return

'That Holly dig!'

On Monday night, the 62-year-old returned to screens as the first episode of Channel 5’s Cast Away aired

This Schofield’s first TV appearance since he quit This Morning after admitting to lying about an “unwise but not illegal” affair with a colleague during his time as a presenter on the ITV daytime show.

This came after months of reported tension between him and co-host Holly Willoughby, and previous controversy after their apparent queue-jumping to see Queen Elizabeth’s coffin.

Cast Away is a three-part series which follows Schofield as he’s stranded on the coast of Madagascar for 10 days with no crew and only some cameras to document his experience.

The first episode saw the presenter arrive on the small island of Nosy Ankarea, with Schofield telling viewers that the survival experience would help him empty his “toxicity tanks.”

The former Dancing on Ice host said he wants people to “let me get on with the quiet life that you’ve all given me”, and reflected on how “dark” things became for him during his exit from ITV.

No doubt many were tuning into the first episode expecting Schofield to vent some anger and frustration at some of his former colleagues, and teasers for the series did reveal he still harbours plenty of anger and resentment.

Now that the first episode has aired, many think they've spotted a dig at Willoughby.

Before he left for the island, Schofield sat down for a farewell meal with his family, during which he asked his daughter: "Are you ok?"

The mocking tone used by the presenter led some to think this was a reference to Willoughby's now-infamous This Morning monologue in June last year, following Schofield's exit.

On her return to the show in June 2023, Willoughby opened the show by saying: “Right, deep breath. Firstly, are you OK? I hope so.”

She ended up being widely mocked for the monologue, which became an online joke and meme.

Reacting to Schofield's not-so-subtle nod to this, one Cast Away viewer wrote: “THAT HOLLY DIG!!!”

Another asked: “Oooh was that a cheeky dig at Holly Willoughby there Phillip?”

Someone else pointed out the "Holly shade."

The second episode of Phillip Schofield: Cast Away will air on Channel 5 at 9pm on Tuesday 1 October, with the third and final episode being broadcast the following day.

All the episodes will also be able to watch on demand on Channel 5 after they’ve aired.