Phillip Schofield’s surprise TV comeback could take him to “paradise rather than hell”, claims a top PR expert.
Mark Borkowski calls the casting of the former This Morning host “genius”, after it was today announced he’d signed up for Channel 5’s Cast Away. It’s the first time Schofield will be back on telly since it was revealed he’d had an affair with a young male colleague last May.
Media expert Mark says the opportunity gives the presenter a lifeline back to telly – whilst also being a likely ratings hit for Channel 5. He says Schofe has been held in “purgatory” since news of his affair broke – and that starring in upcoming Cast Away will give the presenter hope of career redemption.
In Channel 5’s upcoming Cast Away, Phillip Schofield promises to tell his story whilst marooned on a deserted island (
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© Channel 5 Broadcasting Limited)
“For one, it’s giving him a chance again,” tells Mark. “Secondly, what a superb piece of casting. Everyone is talking about it. It’s genius. He might have fallen out of favour, but he’s done the right thing. He disappeared. There’s been no publicity about him going off to this God forsaken place. He’s got a camera, he can self edit. And in a sense, you know, it, it feels like he’s gone to purgatory. He is hoping to coming out of purgatory and go to paradise rather than hell.”
Mark insists Cast Away – which was filmed off the coast of Madagascar and will see Schofield live alone with no food or water for 10 days – will be the perfect opportunity to remind people how good the host is on telly. He says that Schofe’s talent, honed over 30 plus years on shows like This Morning and Dancing On Ice, can’t be denied or replicated and that’s why he’s still hot property.
“There’s still life in the Phillip Schofield brand and he’s got the chance of a comeback,” tells Mark. “It will remind people how good he is on television. He was born and bred in the medium. He didn’t get to the top because he was mediocre. He’s one of the rare people who still can do live TV and make no mistake, that’s not an easy thing to do.”
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PA Archive/PA Images)
News of Schofield’s big TV return has been hit with mixed reactions. While some have welcomed the news, others have dubbed the project “narcissistic”.
“Ultimately, the audience will decide,” Mark continued. “If the naysayers are right, it’s going to be a struggle for him. But if the naysayers are wrong and people like the programme then we’ll see the gradual clawing back of Philip Schofield.
“He’s got a great story to tell. So if he’s learned anything from what he’s been through and this is authentic, then I think he has got a chance to comeback. I just think that we do move on from situations pretty quickly because there’s always someone else there to fall down and fall from grace.
“If Cast Away is good and we like it, people will start to give him a chance. Ultimately, the audience are the winners on this. Whether it’s terrible or amazing, everybody will watch.”
Three-parter Cast Away has been dubbed a ‘survival show’ that will be a physical and mental challenge for Schofe. One clip from the show, released today, sees him in tears telling the camera: “I know what I did was unwise, but is it enough to completely destroy someone?” It will air across three nights from Monday September 30 to Tuesday October 1.
