Phillip Schofield divides fans with dyslexia joke during Matt Hancock interview

Philip Schofield has been blasted for his 'disgraceful' remarks about Matt Hancock's dyslexia as he probes the former Health Secretary with a pointed question about a recent scandal.

This Morning fans were divided over Philip Schofield's comments about Matt Hancock's dyslexia. In an interview with the former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Philip asked, "Was it your dyslexia that meant you misread the social distancing rules?"

This comment was referencing a scandal involving Matt Hancock that emerged a few months ago. In June 2021, a CCTV video was released of the politician breaking COVID-19 social distancing rules and cheating on his wife of 15 years by kissing political aide Gina Coladangelo at work.

The politician responded to Philip's question by stating that of course dyslexia was not to blame for this scandal. "No, I can't blame that on dyslexia or anything else. And in fact, you know I'm not asking for any special favors because I'm dyslexic. And you know in politics I've got some things to offer, in that case, that was a mistake and I've apologized for it." said the politician.

"It was a failure of leadership because I came on shows like this and asked people to do things and then I didn't follow those rules myself."

Although the British public was shocked when the Health Secretary at the time was found to have broken the social distancing rules, many took Matt Hancock's side during this debate and criticized Philip's comments.

"What other disabilities would your producers see fit to okay a joke about?" said one This Morning viewer.

"This was a cheap shot, not only at the expense of the former health secretary, but of all the #neurodivergent and #disabled community. You don’t get to mock us for a quick political gag. Comments like this add to the inequalities and prejudice we tackle every single day," said another.

"Disgraceful question from Philip Schofield This Morning exactly the kind of stigma people with dyslexia face every day. Of all the things you could have asked Matt Hancock you chose to mock and target his dyslexia. Shameful. #dyslexia #reducethestigma #positiveaboutdyslexia," said a third.

Although many viewers suggested that this joke should be reported to Ofcom, others found the discussion humorous and said that Holly and Phillip handled the discussion well with great tact.

"I thought the interview about dyslexia was very very good, I thought they were both very respectful. It is a difficult subject to tackle, however, I really loved the comment that Phil made it even bought a smile to Matt's face! Well done Phillip and Holly," said one fan.

This Morning fans have been dealt their fair share of shocks recently as it was revealed that Eamonn Holmes plans to 'quit This Morning for GB News’ after 15 years. 

Eamonn Holmes and his wife Ruth Langsford have been cornerstones of ITV's daytime television for some time now, and although their slot was replaced by Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary, the couple continued to host the series during the holidays, so this rumor was a huge surprise to loyal fans.

Eamonn and Ruth also spoke exclusively with woman&home recently as the pair opened up about their future plans, Eamonn's chronic back pain, and how the couple will be spending Christmas this year.