‘We would never jump the queue’: Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby address furore on This Morning

Holly Willoughby has said that she and Phillip Schofield “would never jump the queue” as she addressed the public backlash to their visit to see Queen Elizabeth II lying-in-state.

Last week, the This Morning presenters appeared inside Westminster Hall to see the Queen’s coffin before her funeral.

Having been given access to a separate line for media while thousands of mourners waiting for hours, the pair were accused of “skipping the queue”.

ITV denied this, however, with the producers releasing a statement reading: “They did not jump the queue, have VIP access or file past the Queen lying in state – but instead were there in a professional capacity as part of the world’s media to report on the event.”

As the ITV daytime programme returned on Tuesday (20 September), a compilation was shown of the 11 days since the monarch’s death and This Morning’s subsequent coverage.

While reports had suggested that ITV bosses were undecided as to whether to show the footage from the Queen’s lying-in-state due to the public response, it did feature.

Schofield and Willoughby were shown talking to members of the queue and watching a man painting the scene at Westminster Hall on canvas.

In a voice-over, Willougby then explained that as members of the media, the pair were given “official permission” to see the coffin “strictly for the purpose of reporting on the event for millions of people in the UK who haven’t been able to visit Westminster in person”.

The Queen’s lying-in-state at Westminster Hall (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

“Like hundreds of accredited broadcasters and journalists, we were given official permission to access the hall,” she said. “The rules were that we would be quickly escorted around the edges to a platform at the back. In contrast, those paying respects walked along a carpeted area beside the coffin and were given time to pause.

Willoughby continued: “None of the broadcasters and journalists there took anyone’s place in the queue and no one filed past the Queen.”

While she said that she and Schofield “respected those rules”, Willoughby explained: “However, we realise that it may have looked like something else and therefore totally understand the reaction.”

“Please know that we would never jump a queue.”