Before the era of TikTokers and social media influencers, there was a time when content creators were known primarily as YouTubers, as YouTube was the biggest video-sharing platform of the 2010s. PewDiePie, iJustine, Tyler Oakley, and many other internet personalities built their careers on the platform and went on to break numerous records.
Dan Howell and Phil Lester are also among the original YouTubers from back in the day, having made headlines in 2019 when they came out as gay. Throughout their careers, there have been countless rumours about their relationship status, particularly whether they were romantically involved. The duo have now addressed the long-standing speculation and confirmed that they are indeed a couple. Here’s the full story:
On Tuesday (14th October), Dan Howell and Phil Lester posted a 46-minute video on their joint YouTube channel to confirm that they have been in a relationship for nearly 16 years. The pair were online friends for some time, posting videos on their respective channels, before finally meeting in 2009, after which they began making YouTube videos together and eventually moved in with one another.
In their latest video, the duo began by explaining the context behind “Phan”, the ship name fans created by combining their names. While they expressed gratitude for the overwhelming support for their content, they admitted that some individuals had become extremely invasive about their private lives. This was one of the reasons they chose to keep their sexuality and relationship a secret.
Another reason they hadn’t addressed the rumours earlier was that they didn’t want their entire brand to be defined by their relationship. “If anything happened in our private life, not only would that be potentially personally distressing, but we would destroy our own careers. The audience would be torn apart, and people would choose sides,” Dan explained, adding that he wouldn’t have been able to cope with the public’s reaction.
The 34-year-old also revealed that another major reason for keeping their relationship private was that he was still in the closet before coming out in 2019. He described Phil as his safe space, as he was his first boyfriend. Phil, who had already come out to some close friends and family, wanted to give Dan the space to figure things out — even if it meant going back into the closet himself. “You were like a ray of sunlight. What we had was the most important thing to me, so I wanted to protect it,” Dan told Phil.
As for why the UK content creators finally chose to come clean, much of it came down to the fact that the secrecy was holding them back, both professionally and personally, as it prevented them from growing as entertainers and forming close friendships. While there are still boundaries in place, Dan and Phil are determined to live authentically while continuing to create fun and engaging content for their audience. It’s been a long time coming, so congratulations to the pair for finally embracing the future.
Watch the full video below:
Source: YouTube
