Phillip Schofield defends Boris Johnson selfie after This Morning viewers slam him and Holly Willoughby

Phillip Schofield has defended himself and co-host Holly Willoughby for taking a smiling selfie with Boris Johnson, following a heated social media backlash against the darlings of daytime TV.

The presenters of This Morning were accused of “cuddling up” with the Prime Minister, after he appeared on Thursday’s episode for a live TV interview.

The pair confronted Mr Johnson about comments he previously made about Muslim women and single mothers, and asked about his plans for the NHS.

But critics accused the interviewers of being much kinder to the PM than they were to his Labour counterpart Jeremy Corbyn, who appeared on the ITV show yesterday.

Claims of pro-Boris bias spiked after the ad break when the hosts revealed Mr Johnson had asked them for a selfie off camera.

Beaming, they made it clear they had obliged, with Mr Schofield joking: “He didn’t know he had to press the button.”

However Twitter users were not amused, with many turning against the hosts for "clear bias" and “lack of professionalism” by taking the snap.

“You two should be ashamed of yourselves," wrote one user.

Some said on social media that the pair did not go far enough in grilling Mr Johnson over alleged racist remarks in old columns he wrote as a journalist.

"You have the audacity to call Corbyn out, a man who has fought racism his entire life... but don’t call Mr Johnson out on Islamaphobia. I’ve seen you both be upset in the past, I had no idea it was fake.”

Another accused Ms Willoughby of being "giggly like a school girl with a crush", while another raged: "Really ???…a selfie…it just feeds the bumbling buffoon."

Another said: “So disappointed in my favourite tv show and my favourite presenters, lost a viewer and lost a fan."

Others likened it to when American talk show host Jimmy Fallon patted President Trump on the head.

But Mr Schofield countered the criticism with the simple defence, writing: “Can I point out that if Mr Corbyn had asked for a selfie, we would have happily obliged.”

However, many viewers were unconvinced by his argument, with one commenting: "With all due respect, having watched both the interviews, it's very clear you didn't treat both candidates without bias, and I'm honestly appalled at the way you spoke to Jeremy Corbyn."

Another wrote: "I watched both, and I'm a voter of either party and you gave Johnson a much easier ride than Corbyn, so..."

While one responded: “Maybe This Morning just shouldn't do politics."

Other viewers took the opportunity to criticise Mr Johnson for failing agree a time to be interviewed by the BBC's so-called "rotweiller" Andrew Neil before next Thursday's election.

Every other party leader has agreed to a half-hour interview with the broadcaster, but the PM has been accused of dodging Mr Neil and sticking to "softer" interviewers.

The Standard has contacted ITV for comment.