Puzzled - Philip Schofield

Molly is 26, I think.

Am I right I'm thinking his eldest Dd is 27, and he has been married for almost 27 years? So got married after the eldest was born?

Everyone who knew him, knew he was gay.

Everyone, it seems, apart from his wife. And he himself.

Joan Collins is puzzled too

www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-7985405/Oscars-2020-Joan-Collins-exudes-classic-Hollywood-glamour-metallic-gown.html

'It seemed that he was living a fine life. Everyone who knew him, knew he was gay. Why does he want to tell everybody and confess, as it were?
'It seems a little odd to make a big pron... announcement.' '

Indeed, Joan

@OnlyTheTitOfTheLangBerg - couldn't have put it better myself.
Brave, my arse!

There’s a middle ground between choosing not to come out publicly and deciding to marry a woman in your 30s when - according to PS’s own recent words - you already know you are gay. For everyone pointing out how difficult it could be to come out in the 1980s: I was a teenager in the 80s and I don’t disagree. But neither do I think that left the only other option for PS being a marriage based on a fairly fundamental lie in 1993. He could have lived a private bachelor life until he judged it was safe to come out - which for a Londoncentric media luvvie would have been a LOT earlier than 2020, let’s face it - or indeed, never come out at all if he preferred it that way. And since it now appears his wife didn’t know from the outset, and there’s a reasonable chance this whole thing is all stage-managed gloss to deflect from some pretty reprehensible behaviour on his part then no. Not brave. Not stunning. Not an LGB icon. Just another cowardly cheating man using women as his human shields. Same as it ever was.

Michael Ball is lovely

It came to me as I made lunch that this basically boils down to ‘married bloke can’t keep it in his pants and has probably misused his professional power in the pursuit of a dodgy affair’.

If this were a woman he’d be in big trouble so he’s damn lucky he can pull out the ‘coming out’ card at this point.

Shitty for his wife whichever scenario of course.

I also had an argument with a gay friend who said that it didn’t matter if he’d married his wife knowing he was gay ‘as he could still truly love her’. I pointed out that this isn’t the same as being properly mutually in love with someone who desires you. Finding out that you’ve had a one-sided relationship is devastating to the self-esteem. I’ve read comments from him the past couple of days describing her as the ‘sweetest’ and ‘most supportive’ person. That’s not the way I’d want my husband to describe me.

Totally get that if you've been living a lie there might come a time when you wanted to tell the truth (not that a person's sexuality is anyone else's business except close and/or intimate partners and offspring). And if you are in the public eye I suppose that means a public announcement. But what a huge fuss made about something so uninteresting.

That said I agree the 'you didn't have your hand forced did you?' was a bit odd, and although I am no body language expert, the fact that PS says no while shaking his head and then continues to shake his head while saying it was totally his decision looks decidedly odd!

Well yes exactly, sonic

I am surprised that an expensive PR firm, crisis management, all the ITV Management, etc, thought that it was a good idea to put that statement and interview out, complete with the lies about it being his choice and his hand not being forced, etc, when it was obvious that it was all very quickly going to be shown to be bullshit. Making him look even worse than if he'd just said nothing as it was a private matter.

This reeks of Kevin Spacey.

He lives with Cathy McGowan and has done since 1992.
Cathy McGowan from Ready Steady Go who married Hywell Bennett - making them one of the It Couples I'd the 60s?

Now that's far more interesting than Phillip Schofield.

Near the end of his This Morning me-fest, Holly said "You haven't had your hand forced" and he says " no, this is my decision".

This was the bit that made me think hmmm. Why would you go to the trouble of denying something if it's not true and nobody's said anything about it? It smacks of trying too hard to look open and transparent.

Why doesn’t a newspaper just print it? How do celebrities get these super injunctions just because someone is going to say something they don’t like??

Near the end of his This Morning me-fest, Holly said "You haven't had your hand forced" and he says " no, this is my decision".

This may turn out to be a blatant lie.

He’s a gross twat. Haven’t liked him for a long time and this is just the icing on the cake to proving to myself that he is a horrible man. He isn’t fucking brave for saying he is gay. It’s 2020. Also, he didn’t have to marry a woman to not be seen as gay. He could have remained single, pretty simple really.

Cathy McGowan Well there's a rave from the grave if ever I've heard one.

Michael Ball isn't married. He lives with Cathy McGowan and has done since 1992.

I don't care what Michael Ball's sexuality is I still fancy him!

I dint think mb is. There were some persistent rumours about him and someone extremely high profile (who I can't hint at or it will get the thread zapped) from a media insider who was a friend's dad back when I was at school 20 years ago.

It seems many gay men marry and present as straight.

I had no idea Michael Ball was married and straight. That’s the shocker for me!

No doubt there shall be more close to tears moments with Holly looking admiringly at Phil later on Dancing in Ice - probably get high ratings Will Phil skate off with H from Steps into the sunset? Holly is nauseating.

@howwillthispanoutRe
Micheal Ball, I don't think he can have sex anyway after an accident.

We had bloody Boy George, Freddie Mercury, Peter Tatchell...Elton john the list goes on...

Did we though? I can remember Elton John marrying a woman, George Michael didn't come out until much later on, Freddie Mercury wasn't out until he had AIDS was he (I certainly don't remember it).

I can see how possibly PS didn't know himself and then how difficult it must be to admit it later in life, once married. I agree that today it's no big deal but it definitely would have been in the 80s - I can remember Rock Hudson coming out too, it was made into a big deal - but there's no way he could have not announced this and just quietly started living as a gay man. It's ridiculous to accuse him of making a big deal out of this when the fact that he's in the media has left him with no other choice.

Well all the pieces are fitting together now

The little comments, the rumours and statements denying any feuds

I doubt his wife will be so supportive once she is humiliated even further and it becomes apparent that she has been pitied for so long by so many - people may want sympathy but no one wants to be pitied

No doubt there shall be more close to tears moments with Holly looking admiringly at Phil later on Dancing in Ice - probably get high ratings

The reason so many celebs are being so vocal in their praise is because PS is very influential at ITV. A lot of careers rest on regular appearances on the daytime ITV crap. They all go on that show (and the dreadful women one that follows it), PS presents a lot of shows and gets good ratings - I think he is popular to viewers.

Anyone who questions this or criticises Phil or Holly will not be asked on to This Morning again. Simple as that.