Phillip Schofield hits back at claims he ‘lied’ to his wife and admits he only realised he was gay in the last few years
Phillip Schofield and his wife of 27 years, Stefanie Lowe. (Getty)
Phillip Schofield has opened up about his journey towards realising his sexuality, insisting he wouldn’t have married his wife of 27 years if he knew he was gay from a younger age.
The This Morning presenter talks candidly about his coming out process in a new autobiography, Life’s What You Make It.
Seeking to end speculation over his marriage to Stephanie Lowe, the 58-year-old said: “I didn’t know I was gay when I married Steph. If I had, I wouldn’t have got married.”
He said that there was no “specific time” when he realised he was gay, but said he became “increasingly aware” of his sexuality over the last five years.
The ITV presenter hit back at those who accused him of “lying to Steph”, saying: “When I eventually knew, so did she.”
Phillip Schofield turned to prescription drugs ‘to take the edge off.’
Schofield also explained in his book that, after struggling to sleep more than two hours each night, he turned to prescription pills to “take the edge off”.
He said his pain of keeping his sexuality a secret was so great that he could not eat, which resulted in him losing weight.
“My weight dropped, and as it hit 9st 12lbs the This Morning viewers started to notice,” he said. “I was getting tweets from people asking if I was ill.”
Schofield then realised it was then it was time he come out as gay, saying: “If not, the secret was going to give me a total breakdown… at best.”
The presenter, a father to two daughters, came out earlier this year in a lengthy Instagram post saying his family support him wholly.
“You never know what’s going on in someone’s seemingly perfect life, what issues they are struggling with, or the state of their wellbeing,” he wrote.
“And so you won’t know what has been consuming me for the last few years.
“With the strength and support of my wife and daughters, I have been coming to terms with the fact that I am gay.”
