Sir Elton John has hit out at recent media coverage of Phillip Schofield's exit from ITV, describing it as "totally homophobic".
The presenter suffered a huge fall from grace last month after he admitted to lying about having had an affair with a much younger male colleague on This Morning several years prior.
The revelation led to him quitting the broadcaster entirely and conceding that his career was "over" following the intense press scrutiny of his actions.
Commenting on the saga, Elton told the Radio Times: "It's a growing swell of anger and homophobia that's around America.
"The Phillip Schofield thing has been totally homophobic. If it was a straight guy in a fling with a young woman, it wouldn't even make the papers."
He added: "It's all going pear-shaped in America. There's violence, laws enacted in Florida which are disgraceful. If you visit a doctor in Florida, they can refuse to treat you if you're gay, which I find just unbelievable.
"We seem to be going backwards. And that spreads. It's like a virus that the LGBTQ+ movement is suffering."
The veteran singer was speaking ahead of his final ever UK gig as part of his farewell tour, due to take place this Sunday night at the Glastonbury Festival.
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