Phillip Schofield has jumped to the defence of close pal and 'This Morning' co-star Holly Willoughby, after she was branded a 'bimbo' in a damning article in the Daily Mail on Thursday.
In the controversial piece, celebrity agent Jon Roseman attacked Holly's skills as a TV presenter, questioning how she had managed to earn her rumoured £10m fortune, considering she doesn't have "a single flicker of talent".
Roseman - who previously represented the likes of Anne Diamond and Jill Dando - said that Holly had been chosen to front 'This Morning' to provide 'eye-candy', but was ill-equipped for the job as she had no background in journalism.
"Just in case you ever wondered what was so wrong with television today, you need look no further than presenter Holly Willoughby and the news that she is on her way to amassing a £10 million fortune," he wrote.
"How has she done it? Not by showing a single flicker of talent, that's for sure. Can she ask a searching question? Can she empathise without blubbing?"
He went on: "Every word that drops from Holly’s finely-formed lips proves just how ill-equipped she is to be a television frontwoman. Indeed, the fact she’s got the job at all, let alone that she’s so well-paid, shows just how far female presenters have sunk today.
"It’s dispiriting enough that TV bosses are prepared to hire a woman who seems to be such a lightweight. But to see her being rewarded so handsomely takes the biscuit," he added.
However, Phillip was quick to hit back at Roseman, labelling him "washed up" and "out of touch".
Taking to Twitter, he raged: "When did the rants of a washed up, out of touch, inaccurate, old TV agent become relevant? Must've been paid by the word.#SodOffJonRoseman"
Phillip - who previously worked with Roseman's client Fern Britton on 'This Morning' - then added: "He's got to be careful, or we might start discussing him. And that would be interesting."
The article also caused a stir on Twitter, with thousands of users were outraged at Roseman's assassination of the daytime TV favourite.
"What a horrible, sexist, disgusting piece of journalism. Punished for having incredible boobs," one wrote.
Holly Willoughby Twitter reactions
Another said: "Article slating @hollywills is a joke.Shes great at what she does and clearly talented. Author comes across as bitter shes not on his books!"
It isn't the first time Holly has come under fire from the Daily Mail.
Last year she was the focus of a piece by notorious columnist Liz Jones, who labelled Holly an "anti-feminist" and a "playground' bully" for tweeting a picture of herself where she was wearing no makeup.
However, her career continues to go from strength to strength. While currently hosting 'The Voice', earlier this week, it was reported American TV execs are chasing her to front a US TV show.
