Phillip Schofield’s fans mistook the ITV star’s good friend Simon Schofield for his new boyfriend after he shared a snap of them on a stroll.
The 58-year-old sparked rumours that he was in a relationship when he posted the picture, months after he came out as gay earlier this year.
He captioned the snap of his socially-distanced stroll with Simon: “First socially distanced walk with a mate!
“Thank you @sischofe.. last person I had a drink with before the wheels fell off, first I’ve seen as we try to reattach them!”
Phil shot back at speculation that they are together after a fan commented on the snap.
Phil and Simon have been close pals for 20 years (Image: schofe/Instagram)
The follower wrote: “Mate is that what they call it nowadays.”
Phil hit back with a middle finger emoji and wrote: “Yes! A mate! That’s what they still call family friends who you’ve known for 20 years and come round to check if you’re OK.”
Simon and Phil have been good pals for years as the TV presenter has remarked that they’re “family friends”.
Phil confirmed that Simon was a family friend (Image: Instagram/andycoxonuk)
Their Instagram accounts have an array of snaps of them together, performing on stage or going for boozy nights out over the years.
Simon is a singer and actor, and according to his LinkedIn page, was the producer for the production company The Knights Of Music – the same company Phil has worked with – in 2016.
It’s been said that Phil has known Simon since his youth, and he has confirmed they’ve been friends for 20 years.
They both have plenty of snaps together from over the years, highlighting their close friendship (Image: Instagram/sischofe)
They’ve both got a passion for theatre in common, as Simon made his West End debut at the age of 12 as the title character in Oliver, while Phil famously played the lead role in Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat back in the 1990s.
Phil came out as gay back in February in an emotional This Morning interview, live on television.
He has been married to wife Stephanie Lowe for nearly 27 years and they share daughters Molly and Ruby together.
Phil broke down in tears during the moving TV moment as he admitted he could not have done it without the support of his friend and co-star Holly Willoughby, Steph and his two daughters.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
