BBC bosses said to be wooing Holly Willoughby as ITV scandal rages on

The BBC is rumoured to be in talks with Holly Willoughby following the scandal involving her former This Morning co-host Phillip Schofield.

According to a report in The Mirror, executives at the top of the corporation are planning potential new shows for the host, with one BBC chief said to have contacted her directly in the last few days. It comes at a time when Holly’s own future was plunged into doubt following the shocking and abrupt termination of her on-screen partnership with Schofield.

While presenting the icy challenge show Freeze the Fear a year ago, Holly, 42, is said to have built up a good relationship with the BBC. She co-hosted the reality programme with Lee Mack in which extreme athlete Wim Hof, aka The Ice Man, put celebrities through a series of daunting ice-cold challenges to push their bodies to the limit.

Although the show has not been commissioned for a second series, BBC bosses appeared keen to try to find something else for her. To some, this alleged renewed bid for her services, coming amid the latest revelations of an external investigation into safeguarding at ITV in the wake of Schofield’s affair with a younger colleague, did not appear to be a coincidence.

READ MORE: Holly Willoughby to address Phillip Schofield scandal ‘honestly and openly’

The latest reported move for Holly, who was set to return to the screens following a family holiday – came after high-level talks at the BBC about possible projects they could offer her.

A source told The Mirror yesterday: “Holly has had a good relationship and an open dialogue with BBC bosses since she hosted Freeze the Fear. Ever since then they have been keen to sign her up for another project and have bent over backwards to offer her other opportunities… the ongoing drama at ITV has played into their hands.”

The news came as the British Soap Awards – which Schofield, 61, was to have hosted – went ahead last night, with singer Jane McDonald stepping in as presenter.

Schofield finally agreed to quit This Morning when the rift between him and Holly deepened and became much more apparent on-screen. He later quit ITV altogether after admitting to an affair with a male colleague more than 30 years his junior.

Holly is said to already have close ties with a number of BBC executives. She and Charlotte Moore, the chief content officer, were pictured socialising together at last year’s Variety showbusiness awards.

Holly and TV executive husband Dan Baldwin are also known to be close to Kalpna Patel-Knight, who became head of BBC entertainment commissioning just last year.

Kalpna was the chief who offered Holly the job of hosting the BBC’s revamp of Survivor earlier this year. However, she turned it down as it clashed with her schedules at ITV. The role went to another ITV talent, Joel Dommett, who hosts The Masked Singer.

The Mirror’s source added: “Kalpna, Dan and Holly have been very, very tight since they worked on Freeze the Fear together. They are talking to each other regularly. Kalpna has been keen to work with Holly again ever since and offered her Survivor — she was desperate to sign her up for that.

“But Holly couldn’t make it work alongside her filming schedule for This Morning. Ever since then, Kalpna has been keen to find another format for her and the recent developments at ITV may well open the door for that.

“If somehow This Morning does survive, losing Holly would be an absolute hammer blow.”

Another insider told the Mirror: “You can’t underestimate the impact this scandal has had on the team behind the show. It has been absolutely seismic.”

Holly is expected back on the sofa at This Morning tomorrow, co-presenting with 2010 Big Brother winner Josie Gibson. But her return comes as the future of the show remains in doubt amid claims of a “culture of toxicity”. Martin Frizell, This Morning’s editor, has denied those claims.

Both ITV and the BBC have declined to comment.