After a year from hell which saw her quit This Morning after the horrific kidnap plot against her, Holly Willoughby would have been forgiven for shunning the spotlight forever.
But as her ‘obsessed’ stalker Gavin Plumb faces years behind bars after being found guilty this week, ITV’s golden girl is now looking ahead to a bright new chapter in her career.
And following a break after hosting This Morning for 14 years Holly appears determined to get back on our screens – and also looks set for a fresh challenge away from terrestrial television.
Holly, 43, pulled out of hosting This Morning in early October after being told about Plumb’s arrest moments before she was due to go on air.
Days later, the ‘shocked and distraught’ star took to Instagram to announce she ‘would not be returning’ to the sofa. Insiders said she was already disillusioned by ‘chaos’ behind the scenes, but the plot proved the final motivation.
A three-month long silence followed. Then, on January 12, Holly posted an image of a script for ITV’s Dancing On Ice to confirm that she would return to hosting the series once more.
Fans were delighted to see her back on screen, and the show ran weekly until March.
But as that came to an end, Holly announced that her next move would be a step away from her traditional roles on terrestrial television, for which she is known and loved.
Listen to The Mail’s #1 True Crime podcast, The Trial: The Holly Willoughby Plot
Holly Willoughby addressing the Phillip Schofield scandal after she returned to This Morning last June
Holly and Phillip appearing on This Morning after news of their feud had been in the headlines
Filming for the show was due to take place throughout May with programme expected to be available to stream on Netflix in 2025
She is due to host a Netflix show, Bear Hunt, in which a group of British celebrities are put through their paces by Bear Grylls, the survival expert and adventurer, in the Central American jungle.
It is a change of direction for both Holly and for Netflix.
While no date has been set for the programme, it is expected to air from next year and will reportedly feature celebrities including Spice Girl Mel B, The Saturdays singer Una Healy and tennis star Boris Becker.
Bosses at the popular streaming service are said to believe that Holly’s wholesome appeal will help to bring in more mainstream British audiences, including those who watched her on This Morning for many years.
Netflix’s UK content chief, Anne Mensah, reportedly said the company wants to appeal to ‘everybody, from your mum to your next door neighbour’, with Holly surely the perfect face for that.
In recent months, the presenter has also shared hints that she will focus her attentions on other things outside of television, including work on her lifestyle brand, Wylde Moon.
Holly previously said she had the idea for the brand in 2018 and it launched in 2021, with a website full of curated content surrounding her beauty, fashion and family life recommendations.
As well as a blog and newsletter with tips on everything from fashion to sex, Wylde Moon sells products including candles, jewellery and a flagship perfume.
‘I want Wylde Moon to be a place where I can share the things that I love, the lessons that I’ve learnt, the things I see and instantly want to share with others,’ Holly said after launching the brand.
Holly, who also took a break from sharing updates with fans on social media, has also returned to sharing happy moments with her family – including pictures of their pet dog and a cake baked for Easter.
The star appears determined to get back to normal, as she said in her statement: ‘As women, we should not be made to feel unsafe going about our daily lives and in our own homes.’
The presenter has bravely waived her automatic right to anonymity to which all victims of sexual offences are entitled.
However, she did not appear as a witness at Plumb’s trial, which ended with a jury convicting the 37-year-old for soliciting murder, incitement to kidnap and incitement to rape.
Holly, 43, pulled out of hosting This Morning in early October after being told about the arrest of ‘obsessed’ stalker Gavin Plumb’s arrest moments before going on air
The presenter took to Instagram in October to confirm she ‘will not be returning’ to the show following Plumb’s arrest
Holly and her fellow This Morning presenter Phillip, 62, had previously shared one of the closest friendships in showbiz.
The pair regularly went on holiday together and described each other as cherished confidants.
When Phillip came out as gay in 2020, Holly wrote on Instagram that she had ‘never been more proud of my friend than I am today’ and was said to have thrown her support behind his wife Stephanie Lowe.
But their relationship soured after she learned of his secret relationship with a younger colleague, with friends saying it was ‘traumatic’ for her to discover his dishonesty.
Holly ended up at the centre of the fallout from Phillip’s affair as critics questioned whether she knew of her co-star’s ‘deceit’ or if she too was hoodwinked by the presenter. She later confirmed she was in the dark over the affair.
Phillip further confessed that he lied to his employer ITV, and colleagues, friends and agents at the management firm YMU.
Holly later went public about her feelings, releasing a brief statement in which the star revealed she had asked Phillip directly if the news was true and that it had been ‘very hurtful to now find out that this was a lie’.
Holly took an extended half term break while dealing with the revelations and returned to the This Morning sofa on June 5.
Appearing back on the sofa, she admitted she felt ‘shaken, troubled’ and ‘let down’ after her disgraced former co-host lied to her and ITV colleagues and said it felt ‘very strange’ to be starring on the show without Phillip.
She also confirmed that she wanted to stay on the show amid rumours that her role could be under threat, speaking of her intention to ‘start a new chapter’.
However, the fallout undeniably dimmed her star power, and Holly was snubbed from the TV presenter category for the second year in a row at the National Television Awards after the affair furore.
Yet any career considerations would have seen utterly irrelevant after police approached Holly in October to tell her she had been the target of a rape and murder plot.
Plumb, from Harlow in Essex, was quickly arrested and charged with a series of offences, including soliciting to commit murder and kidnap, with a police guard reportedly set up outside Holly’s home.
The host is said to have heard of his arrest moments before appearing on This Morning on October 5.
Holly said she felt ‘shaken, troubled’ and ‘let down’ after Phillip (left) lied to her about his relationship with a younger colleague (also pictured)
Holly and her fellow This Morning presenter Phillip, 62, had previously shared one of the closest friendships in showbiz
Following Plumb’s arrest, presenter Dermot O’Leary addressed the plot, saying: ‘We are not going to talk too much about it but Holly is on the front pages after police arrested a 36-year-old man over an alleged kidnap plot. He has now been charged by Essex Police.’
Co-presenter Ms Hammond said: ‘We are obviously all shocked to hear the news and we want to send our love and biggest hugs to Holly and her family.’
Another presenter, Lorraine Kelly, told viewers: ‘[It’s] very, very upsetting, and of course we are sending Holly all of our love and best wishes.
‘That’s a terrible thing to be having to go through for her and her family.’
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also offered his support to Ms Willoughby while appearing for an interview on This Morning.
‘I was so sorry to hear about everything going on with Holly and I wanted to send my best to her and her family and to all of you,’ he said.
Plumb (pictured in a selfie) discussed his plans to kidnap, rape and murder the TV presenter with the US-based policeman
The 37-year-old kept hundreds of photos of Ms Willoughby on his phone, three of which were shown to the jury
After the news broke, Phillip reportedly contacted Holly the first time in five month to share his well wishes.
Holly announced that she ‘would not be returning’ on October 10, saying she felt ‘I have to make this decision for me and my family’.
The presenter has since hosted Dancing On Ice 2024 and will present a Netflix show, to be released next year, in which adventurer Bear Grylls hunts down celebrities in the jungle.
