Eamonn Holmes has said that there’s “one or two people that would have to not be there” for him to ever work for ITV again.
The presenter had co-hosted This Morning for 15 years prior to his exit in December and now presents the daily breakfast show on GB News.
Eamonn and wife Ruth Langsford presented the ITV daytime show every Friday, but there was a shake up in 2020 that saw the gig handed to new presenting duo Dermot O’Leary and Alison Hammond, with Eamonn and Ruth being moved to school holiday cover.
Eamonn addressed his exit in a new interview with The Mirror, where he hinted at backstage tensions with “one or two” people that would prevent him from working at the broadcaster in future.
He also said he has not watched any of the show since leaving, saying: “It would be too... sensitive. I mean, I spend every day going out on the street and people saying, ‘Why are you and Ruth not on any more?’”
Eamonn also reiterated that he wished to know more about conversations that were supposedly happening behind the scenes.
“I wish somebody would show me the email or the letter or that I was sent to say, ‘Eamonn, this is why this is coming to an end’,” Eamonn said.
“But to tell lies, that I left them to go to GB News...I didn’t – they left me. Let’s get it straight. They left me. I don’t care, because our audience is only up.”
An ITV spokesperson previously disputed that they had made it look as if Eamonn had “walked away from them, rather than the other way round”.
“This isn’t a version of events that we recognise and as we have said before we wish Eamonn all of the very best,” a rep said.
When Eamonn’s exit was first announced, a rep for ITV said: “We would like to wish Eamonn all of the very best in his new role. As a duo, Eamonn and Ruth have been part of the This Morning presenting team for the last 15 years and we thank Eamonn for all of his hard work and contribution to the show.”
Eamonn previously said of the move shortly before his GB News debut: “Put it this way, I’m looking forward to a move somewhere new where they’re pleased to have me. But I wish everyone well at ITV.”
He also said that despite receiving messages of good wishes from some of his breakfast show rivals, he hadn’t heard from former co-stars Phil and Holly.
He later branded Phillip “passive aggressive” over an incident in 2019 in which he cut Ruth short during a live link, reportedly sparking long-standing tension between the two.
“Phillip is renowned for snubbing people,” he claimed. “He’s very passive-aggressive. It’s up to Ruth to say how she felt, but I was feeling hurt for her.
“No one would have snubbed me like that. I have a good Belfast street fighter in me… I would be direct. I don’t go for presenters who think they have a special privilege or aura or influence.”
This Morning airs weekdays at 10am on ITV.