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Phillip Schofield's brother tells court of tearful call to him 'on verge' of taking life

Phillip Schofield's younger brother wept as he told a court that he was "on the verge" of taking his own life while on the phone to the This Morning presenter.

Timothy Schofield, 54, is standing trial at Exeter Crown Court, accused of 11 charges of interfering with a child, which he denies.

It is alleged Schofield, of Bath, sexually abused a child over the space of three years, the court heard earlier this week.

One charge involves a sex act with a child. Others include allegedly forcing the victim to watch pornography.

The alleged offences took place between 2016 and 2019, while Schofield worked for Avon and Somerset Police as an IT worker.

Timothy Schofield (left) with brother, TV presenter Phillip (

Image:

This Morning)

When asked by his barrister Peter Binder whether he had performed sexual acts on the teenager, Schofield replied: "Absolutely not."

The defendant told the jury that he watched pornography with the male, who he insists was over 16 at the time and that they had masturbated while sitting apart.

Giving evidence on Thursday, the defendant told the jury he had been gay his "entire life" but had kept it "completely secret and hidden from everybody".

Timothy went on to say that it was "incredibly difficult" to refrain from being his true self and he had struggled with his mental health for several years.

Timothy Schofield (left) arrives at Exeter Crown Court for the fourth day of his trial (

Image:

PA)
He covered his face with a jacket as he walked to the court (

Image:

PA)

The defendant cried as he was asked about phoning his brother before driving to his home in London in September 2021.

Peter Binder, representing Schofield, asked him: "Phillip described you as being in an extreme state of agitation?"

Schofield replied: "Yes. I remember sitting in a field and making the phone call to him."

Binder went on to ask: "You told him you were on the verge of killing yourself?", before Schofield said: "That's correct, I was so alone."

During cross-examination by Robin Shellard, the defendant told the court the teenager was "old enough" to choose to watch pornography with him.

He went on to tell the jury: "I was in such an awful place and I just was trying to get my head around what had been said, what I had been accused of. I had just been arrested, I was in a police cell."

He admitted searching for terms on a legal pornography website including "young boy teen sex" and "gay teen torrents" but insisted he believed this would return results showing men aged between 18 and their early twenties.

Schofield was asked about his arrest in December 2021 and police interviews in which he replied "no comment" to questions.

Phillip, pictured with co-host Holly Willoughby, is not presenting This Morning this week (

Image:

ITV)

But when he eas asked whether he was guilty of the charges, he responded: "I am not guilty of these charges and that's why I have stuck to my guns the whole way through and pleaded not guilty the whole way through.

"There's no way I am going to plead guilty to something I haven't done."

Schofield denies three counts of causing a child to watch sexual activity, three of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, three of causing a child to engage in sexual activity and two of sexual activity with a child.

Phillip has missed out on filming This Morning alongside Holly Willoughby this week. He was replaced by Alison Hammond on Monday and Tuesday, while Joel Dommett replaced him on Wednesday and today.

The trial continues.

For emotional support you can call the Samaritans 24-hour helpline on 116 123, email [email protected], visit a Samaritans branch in person or go to the Samaritans website.