Eamonn Holmes continued to add fuel to his feud with ITV, accusing them of ‘telling lies about me’ as he picked up a TRIC award on Wednesday.
The former This Morning presenter, 62, won the News Presenter of the Year gong at Grosvenor House in London.
And he took the opportunity on Q&A in the winners’ room to slam his former bosses for axing him from This Morning.
Winner: Eamonn Holmes continued to add fuel to his feud with ITV, accusing them of ‘telling lies about me’ as he picked up a TRIC award on Tuesday
The presenter and wife Ruth Langsford, 62, have been replaced by Alison Hammond, 47, and Dermot O’Leary, 49, after 15 years of presenting the Friday slot in a move that shocked both fans and the couple themselves.
Eamon burst out: “The Ministry of Lies, their press office, of course, who spew the same kind of… yes, the Ministry of Lies.
“So the point is, I didn’t resign from ITV, ITV gave up on me and I never got a single explanation as to why they wanted to get rid of me, so that was that.
“No matter what they told you.” And also things that come out: “Eamon believes himself to be a man, pale and stale.” It doesn’t look like it, does it? I never said that, the ITV press office said that.
Brutal axing: Presenter and wife Ruth Langsford, 62, have been replaced by Alison Hammond, 47, and Dermot O’Leary, 49, after 15 years presenting on This Morning in a move that shocked both fans and the couple themselves
He also denied his comments had made things uncomfortable for Ruth, as she still works with ITV on Loose Women.
He said: “I didn’t torture myself this morning, I’m telling the truth, ITV are lying about me.”
Six months after leaving ITV, Eamon blasted his former employers for forcing him out and shut down claims it was his decision to leave for a new job at GB News, saying: “Let’s face it, they left me!”
He’s had his say: Eamonn has hit out at ITV bosses over his departure from This Morning and accused them of ‘lying’ about the real reason he left (pictured in 2021)
In an interview with The Mirror, Eamon answered the question of what went wrong with ITV and said he was still unclear about the reason for his departure, before responding to claims he had become embroiled in controversial comments about 5G masts’ relationship with coronavirus.
He said: “It was never mentioned to me. If so, at least that would be a reason. And if Dame EasyJet [ITV boss Dame Carolyn McCall, ex-chief exec of EasyJet] wanted an apology or some explanation, fine. But she never picked up the phone and asked me.
“I have never communicated with Mrs. Carolyn McCall. And I still stand by those remarks because I never once said that 5G spreads coronavirus.
“I said that as reporters we should always question the narrative. And that was never more evident than with the #10 regime that has existed since then.”
Denial: He also denied his comments had made things uncomfortable for Ruth as she still works with ITV on Loose Women
TV watchdog Ofcom received 419 complaints about Eamonn’s 5G comment, which led to an on-air apology from the star.
Ofcom said at the time that the “ambiguous comments were misjudged and risked undermining viewers’ trust in public authority advice and scientific evidence”.
Eamonn continued to pour cold water on claims he turned his back on ITV to pitch his show on GB News as he said on Wednesday that the “disinformation department at ITV” could “put out all the lies” they wanted.
He fumed: “I wish someone would show me the email or the letter or that I was sent to say, ‘Eamon, this is why this is coming to an end.’
“But to lie about leaving them to go to GB News… I’m not – they left me. Let’s find out. They left me. I don’t care because our audience is only up.
‘Let’s face it, they abandoned me!’ Six months after his departure, Eamonn has accused his former employers of forcing him to leave and shut down claims it was his decision to leave for a new job at GB News
When asked if he would ever return to ITV, Eamonn shared that there would be a few people who “shouldn’t be there” before even considering it.
The presenter also added that he had not watched the ITV daytime show since his departure as it would have been “too sensitive”.
A representative for This Morning told MailOnline: This is not a version of events that we recognize and as we have said before, we wish Eamonn all the best.
Speaking out: Eamon has addressed claims he got into trouble over his controversial comment on 5G masts’ link to coronavirus
Wow: The TV star continued to pour cold water on claims he turned his back on ITV to present his show on GB News as he said the “disinformation department at ITV” could “expose all the lies” that wish (pictured with Ruth and co-stars Philip Schofield and Holly Willoughby)
Takeover: Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary now host This Morning on Fridays
Back in March, in an interview with The Guardian, Eamon hit out at ITV again after calling the broadcaster “sly” and accusing it of hypocrisy for its push for diversity.
Eamon said: “I joined GB News because the options dried up. The “wrong age”, at the “wrong stage” – at some point it becomes very difficult to find a job.
“It was obvious I wasn’t ticking the boxes for ITV anymore and I wasn’t treated with respect there.
Hit: Back in March, in an interview with The Guardian, Eamonn hit out at ITV once again after calling the broadcaster “tricky” and accusing it of hypocrisy over its push for diversity
“It was a matter of confidence. You think “no, I’m leaving, bye!” So that was it. And nothing has changed: I just play what I do.
In a follow-up to ITV, Eamonn added that GB News had been “very welcoming” and it felt “nice to be appreciated”.
MailOnline contacted ITV for comment at the time.
Cheers! In a follow-up to ITV, Eamon added that GB News had been “very welcoming” and it was “nice to be appreciated” (pictured with co-presenter Isabelle Webster)
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