Stephanie Lowe, the wife of Philip Schofield for 27 years, has broken her silence following her husband’s revelation on television that he is gay.
On February 7, British television host Philip Schofield took to Instagram to disclose his sexual orientation before discussing it on This Morning.
Two days after his announcement, his wife Stephanie spoke publicly about it for the first time.
During an interview with The Sun on Sunday, Steph, 55, expressed, “We’ve had to face the most emotionally painful time in our 27 years of marriage.”
Philip, 55, and Stephanie met in 1993 when she was a BBC production Assistant and he was working for the BBC Children’s television. They have two daughters, Molly, 27, and Ruby, 24.
Philip admitted that he “knew” he was gay when he married his wife. He confessed to believing he had been aware of his sexual orientation throughout their marriage, stating, “Whatever was ”there’ I thought, ‘OK, whatever this is, you stay back because I am happy.’ “
He also acknowledged his naivety in believing he could suppress his sexuality at the time of marriage.
The star commended his wife and daughters for their support through everything.
Reports indicate that Stephanie has no immediate plans for a divorce. A source revealed she intends to wait until Philip is settled in a new relationship before discussing their separation.
“Steph isn’t bitter over Phil’s coming out. She isn’t the type to be spiteful by dragging him into court. She’s saying she’ll stick with him until he’s settled and happy in a new relationship, and then they’ll talk about an amicable split deal,” the source told The Mirror.
Two years ago, This Morning celebrated Phillip and Steph’s 25th silver wedding anniversary during the show. However, claims suggest that Philip’s sexuality was an “open secret” on the This Morning set, and he reportedly informed ITV bosses about his intentions to come out in an impromptu meeting on Thursday. It is also alleged that his close friend and co-host Holly had been aware of his sexuality for some time.