Veteran broadcaster Eamonn Holmes has finally spoken out about the devastating HMRC tax investigation that wiped out his fortune, forced the sale of his beloved Belfast home, and pushed him to the brink of breakdown.

In a raw, tear-stained interview with The Sun published Thursday (November 14, 2025), the 65-year-old GB News host laid bare the three-year ordeal that saw him slapped with a £1.1 million bill after losing a brutal tribunal battle over his worker status while presenting This Morning.

“They took my homes, my savings — and almost my peace of mind,” Holmes said, voice cracking. “I’ve worked since I was 16. I’ve paid tax all my life. And then one day you wake up and strangers decide you owe them everything you’ve ever earned.”

The nightmare began in 2022 when HMRC ruled Holmes had been wrongly classified as a freelancer instead of an employee at ITV between 2011 and 2021. The decision triggered a retroactive tax demand of £760,000 plus £340,000 in penalties and interest — a sum Holmes says he simply did not have liquid.

To pay it, he was forced to sell his six-bedroom Belfast mansion — the childhood dream home he bought for his parents and later inherited. “That house was my roots,” he said. “Walking out for the last time felt like burying my mum and dad all over again.”

His Surrey marital home with ex-wife Ruth Langsford also went under the hammer earlier this year as part of their divorce settlement, leaving Holmes renting in London and “living out of suitcases at 65.”

Friends say the stress triggered a spiral: chronic pain flared, mobility worsened, and he suffered panic attacks so severe he had to pull out of GB News shifts. “There were nights I sat in the dark wondering if it was all worth it,” he admitted. “I lost weight, I lost sleep, I lost hope.”

Holmes is appealing the tribunal ruling and has instructed top tax lawyers, but admits the damage is done. “Even if I win, the money’s gone. The houses are gone. You can’t get time or peace back.”

Fans flooded social media with support:

“Eamonn has entertained us for 40 years and this is how the system treats him? Disgusting.”
“HMRC destroyed a national treasure over paperwork. Shame on them.”
“Crying for Eamonn. The man is broken and still turns up smiling every morning.”

A GB News spokesperson said: “Eamonn is family. We’re behind him 100%.”

Holmes ended the interview with a message to anyone facing similar battles: “Don’t let them take your peace. Fight, cry, scream — but keep going. I’m still here. And I’m not done yet.”

From the king of morning TV to a man counting pennies — Eamonn Holmes’ raw confession is the wake-up call Britain didn’t want.