Coach Trip host Brendan Sheerin had to hide same-sex relationship for fear of arrest
Coach Trip host Brendan Sheerin
Coach Trip presenter Brendan Sheerin has revealed he hid his relationship with his late partner Les.
The long-serving tour guide, who has helmed 24 seasons of the Channel 4 reality show since 2005, spoke to The Daily Mirror about his relationship with Les, who passed away in 2001.
The TV presenter, 60, explained: “I had a lovely relationship with Les and we were together for 25 years.
“We lived together in L’Estartit on the Costa Brava for a long time.
“In the early days it was a bit dark because you had to be 21 to have a gay relationship.”
Brendan Sheerin: It gladdens my heart to see young gay couples in public.
He said: “It does my heart good to see two boys holding hands.
“A while ago I was on Regent Street and I saw these two boys and they saw me looking. I said, ‘Do you know, I would have been arrested for doing that when I was young.’
“They just said, ‘Thank you for standing up for gay rights’, because they know the older generation paved the way for the younger one. So it gladdens my heart.”
Coach Trip host Brendan Sheerin
The presenter said previously: “My big love was my Les… If I’m hit by Cupid’s arrow again, fair enough but I’m not looking for it.”
Sheerin added that he is currently single but does not mix work and pleasure while filming the show, which sees him take contestants on adventures across the world.
He said: “It’s in my contract – no knocking on any doors!
“I’ve had offers, don’t get me wrong. But it would complicate things terribly, wouldn’t it?”
Coach Trip might be the Queen’s favourite TV show.
The show’s celebrity editions have previously attracted famous faces including Cheryl Baker, the Cheeky Girls, the Chuckle Brothers, Jedward, Edwina Currie and Alison Hammond.
However, according to Sheerin, the show has one particularly unlikely fan – the Queen.
Speaking in 2017, he said: “I’ve heard the Queen has it recorded when she’s away.
“It makes me so proud as I love the Queen.
“I think she’s an amazing lady, especially all the good things she’s done for this country. She’s phenomenal.”
