Russian TV uses This Morning energy quiz to claim Western sanctions are not working

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Russian state TV has used a segment of Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby’s This Morning show in an attempt to show that Western sanctions against Moscow are backfiring.

The section of the programme that was aired in Russia shows a caller receiving four months of free energy bills, amid the worsening cost-of-living crisis in Britain.

The inclusion of the duo’s new “Spin to Win” game on Kremlin state TV was spotted by BBC journalist Francis Scarr, who monitors Russian television.

As part of the This Morning programme, the British hosts spin a wheel with prizes for contestants to win, with free energy bills now listed among them.

On Monday, a viewer ended up winning four months of free energy bills.

“Oh my god, thank you. Fantastic. What a relief,” they said after hearing what they had won.

However, the energy game has proved controversial in the UK this week, with some commentators describing how “dystopian” it felt.

“This Morning has turned completely dystopian and Black Mirror by offering to pay energy bills as a competition prize,” one tweeted.

“You know the country’s f***ed when this show is offering to pay your energy bills as a prize on the Spin to Win wheel,” another social media user wrote.

On Tuesday, Schofield appeared to address the conversation about the game while playing the day’s round. Along with household bills, cash prizes of £1,000 and £3,000 were available to win.

“I wonder how much of that they can complain about online,” he remarked, to which Willoughby chuckled.