Vanessa Feltz defends Holly Willoughby as 'really nice'

Vanessa Feltz has defended Holly Willoughby amid continuing criticism at the This Morning host in the wake of Phillip Schofield's resignation from ITV.

Willoughby returned to the breakfast show last week after a brief hiatus after Schofield admitted to a "not illegal" affair with a much younger colleague.

Willoughby has received criticism from the likes of Eamonn Holmes and Harry Hill over how she has handled the scandal but Feltz, who was a frequent guest on This Morning, has come to her defence.

Read more: Vanessa Feltz and Gyles Brandreth defend This Morning against toxic claims

Speaking to OK Magazine, Feltz said: "She’s a really nice, good natured, kind, sweet person."

Feltz then went on to give an example, mentioning Willoughby's kindness when she talked about being sexually assaulted by Rolf Harris in the aftermath of his death the other week.

Feltz said: "For example, all of this was going on, and then Rolf Harris died. I was asked about the fact [Harris] sexually assaulted me live on TV, and so I told the story again. And then I got a message from Holly just saying, 'Are you OK? It must be really hard for you to talk about it. Are you alright?'"

Read more: Vanessa Feltz recalls being groped by Rolf Harris on live TV

Feltz revealed she replied by saying: "I said, 'Of course I’m fine. You know it was a long time ago. In fact, I was even fine at the time – I was married with two kids, I wasn’t a child, I was perfectly able to deal with it.

"More to the point, how are you?'"

Willoughby returned to This Morning last Monday and gave a speech about Schofield's conduct and resignation during which she said she had been lied to by her co-star and long-time friend.

Willoughby also said she felt "let down" by Schofield who has been dropped by his management company and stepped back from all public commitments.

Watch below: Holly Willoughby returns to This Morning and blasts Phillip Schofield