Phillip Schofield: Comedian realised her husband was gay when supporting other gay men

8 February 2020, 09:59 | Updated: 8 February 2020, 10:01

Sarah was volunteering for the Samaritans and was speaking to gay men who were married to women - and she recognised the same behaviour in her own husband.

She'd spoken to Phillip Schofield about her experience on This Morning three years ago, while he himself came out as gay after 27 years of marriage recently.

"They were describing how their home life worked and how they got time to themselves, particularly pretending they were watching sporting fixtures that they weren't watching," Sarah said, "they would initiate rows before big family occasions so the wife would take the children and they'd get time to themselves.

"Then I realised that was happening in my own marriage."

Sarah had suspicions at seven but it was ten years down the line that she knew for sure and at this time her children were seven, eight and sixteen. For her teenage son especially, "it was not a good time to have discussions like that with him."

She believed her husband was being blackmailed and if the blackmailer had outed him to her it would have been a "whole different story."

Sarah confronted him and he initially denied it, and after ten years she knew for sure but he still denied it - and has done to this day. He left the family home 15 years ago and has still not spoken to Sarah or his children.