Ant and Dec take surprise swipe at Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield
ANT McPartlin and Declan Donnelly have taken a surprise swipe at former This Morning presenters Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield – four years after the infamous “queue gate.”
Phillip and Holly received a slew of backlash back in September 2022 over claims they “skipped the queue” to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth, who was lying-in-state at Westminster Hall.
The pair broke their silence on the scandal on This Morning and viewers were left furious by their “pathetic excuses.”
Now, four years on from the controversy, Ant and Dec have made a very cheeky comment about their conduct.
The telly duo were chatting about going to see the Bayeux tapestry – which depicts the events leading up to the Battle of Hastings and the Norman Conquest of England in 1066 – at the British museum.
Dec said on their podcast Hanging Out: “It’s the first time in nearly 1,000 years, it’s been in the UK. You’ve got to go and see it.”
They both agreed to visit the museum together but believed it was going to be very busy.
Ant asked listeners: “If anyone from the British Museum is watching this podcast in their downtime… I’d like to jump the queue.”
Appearing to take aim at Holly and Phillip, Dec laughed: “I’m not sure about TV presenters skipping queues.
“I don’t think that’s going to end well.”
Ant continued: “What could possibly go wrong? It’s just scuttle down the side, pop in the front.”
Dec added sarcastically: “Do you think that’s the end? Nobody’s gonna say anything about it.”
TV star Ant then asked Dec if he wanted to skip the queue with him but the latter was adamant that’s something he’d have to do alone.
In 2023, Phillip told The Sun of the impact “queue gate” had on him and Holly.
He said: “I don’t ever throw anyone under the bus, but I have a very good instinct for these things and I knew it was a bad thing to do.
“We were texting each other backwards and forwards afterwards. I said to Holly ‘I knew I should have gone with my gut,’ and she said ‘I know.’
“But we were shell-shocked, the both of us, completely shell-shocked by the reaction.
“What are the two things you don’t screw up? The Queen and a queue.”
Phillip continued: “So we are forever now [associated]… it doesn’t matter now because I’m not going to go out any more … but forever now, you go to the butchers and someone says, ‘Oh do you want to [skip ahead]…?’ ‘No, no, I’ll stand here.’ I’m serious.”
Many celebs including David Beckham, Susanna Reid and Sharon Osbourne were seen standing in the long queue to see the Queen.
At the time, This Morning shared a statement on their official Instagram account, it read: “Hello everyone, we would like to clarify something. We asked Phillip and Holly to be part of a film for this Tuesday’s programme.
“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.”
