Holly Willoughby shared a cryptic post just days after her “highly strategic” return to This Morning in the wake of the Phillip Schofield scandal.
The 42-year-old TV presenter took to the Instagram account of her Gwyneth Paltrow-style wellness brand, Wylde Moon, on Wednesday and asked her 180,000 followers if coincidences were “secret messages from the universe.”
Holly distanced herself from former co-host Phillip, 61, on her return to ITV after he was ousted from This Morning last month and admitted to lying about a relationship with a younger male colleague.
Alongside her latest social media post, Holly wrote, “We all love a ‘sliding door’ moment, but are meaningful coincidences really a sign of a beautiful coincidence that carries greater meaning than seemingly ‘random’ coincidences?”
Cryptic: Holly Willoughby shared a post just days after her ‘highly strategic’ return to This Morning in the wake of the Phillip Schofield scandal
Scandal: Holly distanced herself from former co-host Phillip, 61, after he was ousted from This Morning last month and admitted to lying about a relationship with a younger male colleague
This comes after Amanda Holden dismissed reports she was involved in a feud with Holly – after posting a video in which she appeared to mock the presenters’ return to ‘This Morning’.
In a statement posted to her Instagram page, Amanda, 52, addressed reports that she and Holly were being pitted against each other over multiple jobs.
“Sadly for far too long, strong and intelligent women have been pitted against each other when we should all be celebrated for ourselves,” Amanda wrote.
“Women are still expected to say nothing, suffer in silence and just move on.” And we do… most of the time.’
The Britain’s Got Talent judges raised eyebrows this week when they posted an Instagram video mimicking Holly’s opening phrase in her statement to Phillip on Monday morning: “Are you alright?”
Holly returned to the show for the first time since Phillip’s firing following his affair with a younger male colleague, saying, “Right, take a deep breath.” First, are you okay? Hopefully.’
Hidden messages: Holly took to the Instagram account of her Gwyneth Paltrow-style wellness brand, Wylde Moon, on Wednesday and asked her 180,000 followers if coincidences were “secret messages from the universe”.
Alongside the post, Holly wrote, “We all love a Sliding Doors moment, but are meaningful coincidences really a sign of a beautiful coincidence that carries greater meaning than seemingly ‘random’ coincidences?”
Beaming: Holly also shared snaps from her recent family vacation
In Amanda’s video, she wore an angelic white ensemble similar to the outfit Holly wore on Monday and said, ‘Hi, it’s Tuesday.’ Are you alright?’
Later she slams Holly again on the radio.
In response to her co-host Jamie, she said, “I’m fine guys, are you alright?” before cackling loudly.
A spokesperson for Amanda told Web, “Amanda has always made it clear in the past that she has no issues with Holly.” “Today’s video was taken out of context.”
Claims: It comes after Amanda Holden denied reports that she is involved in a feud with Holly – after apparently mocking her return to This Morning
Friends? Amanda previously said she believed Phillip sabotaged her chances to fill in on This Morning in 2018, while Holly – pictured with Amanda in 2012 – hosted I’m A Celeb
Picture perfect: Holly and Amanda have long been known for their similar sense of style
Amanda previously said she believes Phillip sabotaged her chances to fill in for Holly on This Morning in 2018 when she hosted I’m A Celeb. Instead, Rochelle Humes got the job.
In a resurfaced video, Amanda was quizzed by her Heart Radio co-star Jamie about her feud with Phillip.
When he tried to approach the subject, Amanda told him, “I’ve come to terms with this Jamie, you have to move on with this.”
He pressed on, asking, “You might have gone further, but I just wanted to know if there’s more to the story?”
Amanda told Jamie she tried to reach Phillip, but her attempts to set up a meeting to clear the air were ignored.
She said, “I offered to meet him for coffee months ago, but he hasn’t responded to my texts. ‘What can I say?’
According to The Sun, Amanda said she felt “disappointed” in Phillip when she found out she didn’t get the job and it went to Rochelle.
She had previously filled in for Holly when the This Morning star took a year off from the show to give birth to their third child, Chester, now seven, in October 2014.
A former daytime television executive previously told The Sun: “Phillip has been actively lobbying for Rochelle to get the job, although Amanda is more experienced – and has been told privately that she got the job.”
An ITV spokesman later insisted that Rochelle’s casting was a producers’ decision, telling Web: “The cast of presenters on This Morning changes regularly and the final decisions about that cast are made by the producers and not the presenters .”
During her time as the show’s co-host, Phillip admitted that he found working with Amanda “quite scary at times.”
He told Heat magazine at the time, “Amanda kept me on my toes.” She has a faulty edit button and forgets she’s on TV, which is hugely endearing and funny, but also pretty scary at times.
After Phillip stepped down from This Morning, Amanda posted a “strongman” emoji to Instagram in what appeared to be a sign of celebration. However, since the post didn’t include a caption, its meaning wasn’t clear.