to think it matters whether Phillip Schofield met the runner when he was 12 or 15.

[couldanyoneexplain]

I've seen and heard both.
Obviously getting someone a job at 18 or 19 with exploitative intentions is sleazy in the extreme. 15 is underage and deeply concerning, but 12 is deep into paedo territory.

The theatre company 2Faced Theatre that the boy was a member of and PS a patron of seems to have started in 2008 (co-founded by Simon Schofield, a close friend of PS (but no relation) who met each other also when SS was quite young and PS quite a bit older) when the boy would have been 12. My guess is that this is when the early photo was taken. PS began following the boy on Twitter in 2011 when the boy was 15.
PS claims "a friend" asked him to follow the boy on Twitter.

Did anyone watch the C4 show about the woman abused by her Dad this week? He told Police that she was very sexual, came onto him and he was too weak to control himself. Blamed the entire scenario on her. She was 2 years old when it started

That's what paedophiles do. They groom their victim, accept no responsibility and don't like the word paedophile - so they want to be termed as a "minor attracted person" instead. Denial. Denial. Denial. Just like PS is now doing.

Jesus wept, can you imagine if Jimmy Saville and Rolf Harris had been outed today... would people say #bekind to them too.....

Yes that’s how pedophiles operate.

But there is no evidence PS is a pedophile and it’s not remotely comparable to a 2yo being sexually abused by her dad FFS. How offensive to compare the two

Beside PS has taken responsibility and isn’t trying to be called a minor attracted person FFS

This hysteria has to stop

Both are wrong, though I agree with the OP there is a difference between 12 and 15.

Yes, Simon Schofield looks like he knew the runner quite well.

FGS.

Im reporting any pictures posted of the man who doesn’t deserve to be doxxed like this.

The desperate scrabble to be the one to post shocking photos is pathetic.

Either age is bad full stop.

@QuintanaRoo Yes. In that photo my estimate is that the boy is 17 and Simon Schofield is around 28. SS was the boy's mentor at the theatre

Sorry, thought it was common knowledge, the photos have been over Twitter for years.

Don't be so disingenuous!

MM was 20 when the sexual activity started, well past sexual maturity.

Do you think we should be legislating who 20 year olds can have sex with?

Is he had been 25 would you still view PS as a paedo? what about 27?

We need to set the limit somewhere. The age of consent is 16. That's four years before sexual activity started. Hardly paedophile territory.

Yes the ‘haha Leo strikes again with his 25 and under girls’.
I won’t have that this isn’t steeped in homophobia. It just is! And also a bored public looking for someone new to flog.

Agreed. Homophobia plus a nice distraction for the masses from cost of living crisis/failing Uk economy. Have whatever opinion you like on Schofield, but his behaviour is not that uncommon and noone called other people - including women - who have done same meeting teenagers and then having a sexual relationship once they’ve turned 18 paedophile/nonce etc.

Me too! Apparently they didn't have sex until the guy was 21 anyway.

When he came out as gay everyone feted him. But oh no he's not allowed to have sex with someone.

I actually feel sorry for PS, it looks like he’s paying for all the times TV execs closed their eyes to much more serious goings on eg Saville, Harris etc and there’s now a moral panic with everyone rushing to distance themselves from him. What with the stigma of his brother being a convicted paedophile it wouldn’t be a surprise if he has a complete breakdown or worse.

The only job Leo's girlfriends get the sack from because of him is the job of fake girlfriend . I'm assuming they know that will happen when they turn 25 though!

But how do you know this is not a "serious going on" ? It needs investigating. He was in a position of power with access to many young people so of course it needs looking at.

I agree with you OP. Both are underage and wrong. But 12 is more wrong.

However it does also depend when the relationship turned sexual/flirty. I don't think knowing someone, then having a relationship necessarily means the intent or feelings started when they met.

He was invited to a school to give a talk when the lad was 15.

Nothing happened.

Years later lad contacted PS for a favour to get him into TV.

Later still PS helps him get a job on GMB.

Guy is now 20.

Yes it's distasteful and PS should have known better, but no law had been broken.

The opening post about a 12 and 15 year old is deeply misleading and a grotesque misrepresentation.

I do think there is a reason he is being thrown to the wolves now - when he came out as gay, he was NOT universally feted - everyone on here said “what about that 15 year old boy he had an affair with?” So it has been common knowledge for years.

There is definitely a reason it is being pushed by the media. Doesn’t mean what he did was ok - he should have been forced out years ago. But it is almost certainly coming out now because he has pissed off the wrong person, or is being used to cover up something else.

Yeah this. I think this must be driven by homophobia. It must be

From what you have set out there, what is distasteful?

I only read about this situation on here and Im struggling with some of the comments that have been made on various threads. Ive seen references that the boyfriend was vulnerable - in what way, does he have learning needs or MH issues or substance use issues? Was that before or after his relationship with PS?

What has he actually said about it all? Ive seen references that he was exploited and groomed but no one is quantifying how that occured?

There also seems to be massive conflation about having this relationship and being unfaithful to his wife. You dont get sacked for being unfaithful to your partner, so what was he sacked for exactly, having a relationship with a colleague? Lots of people do that

Looks much younger than 17.

Sadly I don't believe PS.

I think he did have a relationship with the runner, I think he lied to his wife, itv chiefs and the public years ago when coming out as gay and I have no reason to believe his protests of innocence that this relationship was a simple mistake by 2 consenting adults!

I feel desperately sorry for the runner and his family caught up in this utter shit storm!