To think Phillip schofield scandal is homophobia?

[ivfregret]

Have I missed something in that the guy Philip had the affair with was not a minor?

He was a minor when they met, as was Cheryl Cole and Liam Payne for example and no one has anything bad to say about that relationship.

I'm not sticking up for Philip and really dislike him, and also think even if the runner was above the age of consent is most definitely questionable behaviour but I can't help think of it was a heterosexual affair it would not be treated in the same way?

It's not relatively minor. He groomed a child.

The age that the boy was when he met PS seems to be getting younger every week.

More timeline....

Runner turned 18 in March of 2014.

Later that month Philip publicly tweeted him for the first time saying ‘Hey @xxx welcome back! How’s the acting going? Got the big break yet?

At the time the runner was working on ‘Harriets Army’ on CBBC and ‘The Mill’ Series 2 Channel 4, he had also already appeared on HollyOaks.

July 2014 - Philip Schofield invited him to the TM set for the day.

From July 2014 to March 2015 - there were public back and forth conversations on twitter between them - nothing of great significance and not in great volume.

2014-2015 - Runner and Philip are seen at a restaurant together (it was posted in 2015 but photographer now says it was taken in 2014).

March-April 2015. Runner is now 19 and comes from Manchester where he lives and does a 3 week work placement on TM then returns to Manchester.

There are no more public tweets between them after this visit to London / ITV.

March 2016 - Runner is now 20, moves to London and starts working as a runner at ITV on TM.

Jan 2020 - Runner is now 23 (almost 24) and runner and Philip have a spat at the awards ceremoney (likely post break up), runner tries to get Philip to talk to him and publicly declares his love for him (overheard by a number of others). Runner also approaches Holly at the awards ceremony.

Feb 2020 - Philip comes out given the runner's public declaration meant this had to be addressed.

Currently runner is 27 years old.

The link between them is Simon Schofield, who the runner identified at the age of 18 as his mentor, and who Philip has called his best friend. Simon was a theatre actor in Manchester as well (Simon is unrelated to Philip).

I don't buy any of it.

PS is just like loads of other celebrities- they can attract younger and more attractive lovers because of their position and he just took advantage of that like so many do. On the other hand, the runner was well past the age to be considered 'vulnerable' when the affair began. No doubt he was more than willing to enter into an affair that he thought would further his career- bet he thought he'd hit the jackpot there!

Just because he met him at 15 doesn't mean he 'groomed' him! He more than likely wanted to give the kid an opportunity as he was similar to himself at that age.

I can't get outraged about it all- who really cares?

OK, reverse it then:

Older male celebrity 'takes under his wing' a pre teen young girl, gets her a job working on a prestigious national TV show he presents then engages in sexual activities behind the back of his wife and bosses.

If that isn't textbook grooming, then what is?

Does anyone actually know what “grooming” means legally? Unless you are a friend or confidante of either party there is absolutely no way to know that grooming has taken place.

We read your posts.

I mean, if you don’t think grooming a boy is a big deal - as you obviously don’t - then I guess I can see why you’re surprised by the reaction to this.

Meanwhile, other people do think grooming a boy is newsworthy, not to mention the huge cover-up that entailed.

https://twitter.com/thechefie/status/1660012648170246146

for anyone who didn’t see the picture

As if bang on cue…

The only homophobia op is from women defending the nice guy because he’s a lovely man, who is gay who hasn’t done anything wrong. The power imbalance, etc. All fine because your typical average viewer of this morning probably uses Facebook to share posts from America. We know the type.

They embarked on a sexual relationship the second her came of age.

I mean, you can not see what‘s right in front of you if you don’t want to. Leave others to draw their own conclusions.

I think it's not because he is gay but there is definitely elements of homophobia to it. He's acted very badly and it does seem to have been an abuse of power at the very least.

Are you being intentionally obtuse OP?

https://twitter.com/CKRosekilly30/status/1662370300594380801

You again. Here you are on another thread bleating on about grooming:

"Yes I dont disagree that it looks like “grooming” (whatever that means), but our home country makes this legal."

And here is the information provided there, again, which you claimed to understand:

Grooming a child is a criminal offence.

Grooming | Metropolitan Police

There is ample evidence that grooming took place.

Nope, it's not. A big deal should always be made in situations like this. He doesn't have a get out of jail free card because he's gay.

PS is an extremely odious man. His lies have finally caught up with him.

He is the instigator of his own ruin, and good riddance to him.

PS was a patron of that theatre where he had been going since a young boy.

Did Mr S manage to hold his sexual desires for a man for the whole of his life? Until that point - I do wonder if there has been others

Interesting how he tried to save everyone at ITV by telling everyone he lied - so if he lied why did they pay the runner off? All v odd

I think it being a gay relationship is relevant as he was presenting a wholesome, married with kids daytime TV persona and he was not straight or wholesome and his marriage was a sham and his brother is a paedophile.

Being gay is a little slice of the pie of lies.

I'd also wonder if this lad was the only one he ever dallied with.

He is 15 in the group picture from the theatre visit (we know the exact date of the picture and his birthday). He is 18 in the picture of the 3 of them on the couch (we know the exact date of this picture and his birthday).

I said the deal being made over it is way way bigger than I wouldn't expect that's all

That's such a silly comment.

As is throwing out 'homophobia' as an accusation.

There are myriad issues here. The age gap linked with the relative positions of power; the vulnerability & possible mistreatment of the young man; the lies he told to colleagues and family; the extent or not of the investigation ITV carried out ... and that's just to start.

The fact of PS being gay is irrelevant to this.

Yep

Agree.

I don't doubt that there are some homophobic people using this as an excuse to stick the boot in.

But the "scandal" itself is not because PS is gay - it's because he groomed a teenager and then, arguably, abused his position of power to have an affair with him, and lied about it repeatedly.

PS's sexuality is relevant only to this matter as it is alleged that PS made his coming out announcement because rumours were circulating, and it was a convenient way of heading them off.

Had PS been straight and presented his faultless wholesome married man persona, only for it to come out that he'd groomed a teenage girl, had an affair with her aged 18, having got her a job on his TV programme, and repeatedly lied about it, I suspect there would have been just as much scandal.

There is homophobia in some of commentary - from those who secretly think being gay = peado and are relishing the chance to air their outrage alongside everyone else’s.

The truth is, it’s become such a huge thing because of the depth of lies involved. Everyone on TM knew - including St Eamonn who needs to give his flapping gums a rest before the people he’s pissed off decide to start talking.

The higher ups at ITV knew and covered for him.

PS himself has had decades of affairs with men and used means fair and foul to keep people silent so he could keep up the facade of wholesome hetero married man and housewives fave.

He’s also an absolute horror of a person and has made so many enemies people are lining up to give him a verbal kicking to get their own back.

This is a situation entirely of his own making and down to his own arrogance.

Philip was known to have many dalliances and trysts with men ever since the 1990s. It wasn't really a secret at all that he was gay. The gay world knew he was gay but he hadn't come out publicly so they respected that.

He had his own apartment. I am sure his wife knew as well, long before he came out publicly.

This Spitting Image clip was made in 1992 I think (could be wrong year in the 1990s). There was already a lot of speculation about him being gay then.

Absolutely disagree with this. It’s all about the grooming, whether it was a girl or boy would he equally “scandalous”.