Phillip Schofield: James O'Brien's caller reveals her husband recently came out to her
7 February 2020, 11:07 | Updated: 7 February 2020, 11:09
A caller to James O'Brien's show revealed Phillip Schofield's announcement that he is gay really resonated with her - because her husband recently came out to her.
The This Morning presenter announced "You won't know what has been consuming me for the last few years. With the strength and support of my wife and my daughters, I have been coming to terms with the fact that I am gay.
James asked his listeners if they had any similar experiences and could explain what he might be going through.
That's when Julie called in and she said she could really empathise with what Mr Schofield's wife must be going through.
She revealed: "It really resonated with me because just recently my husband of 10 years came out to me.
"We are still living together, basically as a lie. We don't have a physical relationship. I don't love him the way I used to love him romantically, but I still have a lot of love for him.
"Going forward, I don't know where we go from here."
James asked exactly how she felt about it and she revealed: "It made sense. There was something I couldn't put my finger on for a long time. When he came out, all the dots started to connect.
"I feel sorry for him, but I'm also very angry.
"I feel like I've been lied to and strung along to hide his own sexuality."
James admitted that Julia's call had changed his mind about the story, reflecting: "When I said 20 minutes ago I wanted to speak to the wives of men who had done this, it was almost an afterthought. But you're the central character in this story.
"I can't begin to imagine that. The nearest you can come to empathy is to put yourself in that position and the idea that Mrs O'Brien would turn around to me tonight and say that she's been gay for 20 years of marriage... everything we've done together and built together would feel fake.
"If Julia has reminded us of anything it's that the wife in this story has been with the man for 27 years and in a sense, he never existed."
Watch the full, powerful call at the top of the page.
