Phillip Schofield has come out as gay

[catinb0oots]

Blimey. Married for 27 years.

George Michael did not openly announced he was gay in 1984. A quick google says it was 1998 that he came out publically.

I haven’t checked the others.

I am not supporting him. But to all those saying he should keep his private life private - do you also say that when straight celebs talk about their wives/husbands/kids/marriage? I suspect you don't. It is only gay people who are supposed to keep their life quiet.

If he was about to be outed - and I sincerely hope there won’t be a headline similar to the one you made up - then I understand the announcement but i don’t think it was quietly at all.

Like others have suggested, it could have started with a split announcement, divorce and then on from there.

I wish him well for his new life and I will be sorry to hear if his hand has been forced (although he says not) but I am sorry, I feel for his wife more.

George Michael only came out as gay in 1998 because he was going to be exposed in the papers. I know there were other reasons, but he had very few hits by that stage.

@dunnyplop, what unfortunate timing for a grammatical error

It's interesting he's announced it after months of negative stories about him. Is he hoping to get sympathy?

I must have been living in a bubble as I didn't see this coming at all!

I don't think it's cool to have been cheating on his wife with men over the years, if what I'm reading is true.

I'm straight, I'm married to a man so the fact I'm into men doesn't give me the right to shag other men as I'm married. Same should have applied here. He should have ended his marriage before being with men.

Hearing this has changed my view of him tbh.

I recall Dale Winton was quoted as saying he was always heartbroken by being in love with a high profile married man in TV but was unable to be with him. I now wonder if that married man was in fact PS.

It's interesting he's announced it after months of negative stories about him. Is he hoping to get sympathy?

More likely he was about to get outed anyway.

@dunnyplop i can take an interest in PS coming out as gay, without having an interest in WHY he chose to do that on a Friday, you know?

It doesn't make me hypocritical. No need to name call and be rude now is there?

It's possible to be happy that someone has come out 'late' whilst at the same time expressing regret that it took so long. Criticising someone for leaving it so long is only going to add to the reticence people have in coming out. Whilst things are so much better now, society is still not equal. There is still lots of abuse and stigma associated with being gay.

Rather than focusing on the individual and how they have supposedly misled people, I think we should focus on the society that leads people to think they've got to hide themselves.

🤦🏼‍♀️

Maybe he has been difficult lately as he has been building up to this.

@dunnyplop i guess you don't actually know what point you're trying to make considering you're unable to actually explain it. The only person you're making look stupid here is you.

What is strange is I started working in IT back in 1994. One of the men who worked there was openly gay - he started a couple of years before me. He used to take his partner along to work events, no-one took the piss, he was well liked and was very good at his job.
So you could be out in the early 90s and have no problems (& yes I accept IT is different to children's tv..,).

If interested, I’m talking about Freddie Mercury, Boy George, Holly Johnson and George Michael, with Simon le Bon flying the straight flag.

Freddie Mercury was not openly gay in the 80's. George Michael only was when he was going to be exposed in 1988 by the press when his career was already on the decline. Boy George was openly gay but underplayed his sexuality by saying he preferred a cup of tea to sex. He later said this was a lie. Holly Johnson yes was openly gay.

You are wrong if you think these were the biggest artists in the 80's. The biggest acts were Michael Jackson, Prince, Madonna, U2, Bruce Springsteen, Run-D.M.C.. Not openly gay person there.

top40weekly.com/top-100-artists-of-the-80s/

@Jocasta2018 Strangely enough I remember friends telling me that IT was one of the easiest fields to be out in. I have no idea why.
I am aware that a lot of trans people seem to work in IT as well.

So you could be out in the early 90s and have no problems

One of my friends got headbutted at school because he was gay. This was in 1999. And if you think there are still no issues nowadays then you are naive.

yes service personnel, and several friends in other types of jobs including teachers. Were you around then as someone openly gay? Because you do not seem to know the first thing about it.

It wasn’t necessary to be openly gay in the 1980s to know that you couldn’t be fired for that reason alone.

Also people harassed out of jobs for being gay. Also denied access to services such as hotel rooms.

That’s not the same as being fired for being gay, which was your assertion.

George Michael did not openly announced (sic) he was gay in 1984. A quick google says it was 1998 that he came out publically (sic)

Yes, that will be why I made specific reference to him coming out in the 1990s.

You are wrong if you think these were the biggest artists in the 80's. The biggest acts were Michael Jackson, Prince, Madonna, U2, Bruce Springsteen, Run-D.M.C.. Not openly gay person there.

That is why I specifically described them as the biggest BRITISH musical acts. Do try to keep up.

@Iamthewombat Are you always so patronising?

Show me the legislation that meant people could not be fired for being gay in the 80's? It was legal and happened.

I can't be arsed to read this thread, same as it seems that no one can be arsed to read or listen to what he said. He was pretty clear that his family have known for some time and that they knew he was going to do this today.

I have no feelings towards him either way, I barely watch TV and don't care if he's gay or not. And I have no doubt that this is far from pleasant for his wife. But stop with all the 'she must be gutted to have found this out today' and 'did he consider her when he did this' because he has addressed those and was clear that this has been a long process for him and his family.

@Gingaaarghpussy

if it is any consolation, I get what you are saying. I hear the coldness, self absorption and probably worse ...

Ignore the woke judgey offended who are making out this is because, gay, they are lucky they have no experience of abuse and neglect.

In 1992, PS was performing as Joseph. Much less chance of being head butted for being gay when you're working in musical theatre.

My ex ‘supposedly‘ misled me.

I understand him being fearful of society - he didn’t have to lie to me.

The stigma of being the partner of someone who chose a public announcement (though not quite as public as PS I grant you) is not pleasant either.

The ridiculous assumptions made about the relationship or the ‘wronged’ partner can be equally damaging.

I will never feel the same about myself and I will never fully trust a person ever again.

It isn’t always about the poor soul who has ‘had to live a lie’.

So many posters love to embellish and imagine things. No one knows anymore than what’s in his short ‘I’m coming out’ message. No one know how or what his wife is feeling. She might be proud and happy for him for all anyone knows on here or she may hate him. 🤷🏻‍♀️ He might be being ‘brave’ or he might be being a bastard, maybe both!! but no one on this thread can know and all the gossipy speculation in the world won’t change that.

The spitting image video was kinda funny though....