After years of rumours and speculation, YouTubers Phil Lester and Dan Howell have finally confirmed that Phan is real.
Since 2009, the British duo have made waves on YouTube and Tumblr with their comedy videos and undeniable chemistry, sparking long-standing fan theories that they were more than just friends.
While Lester and Howell both came out as gay in 2019, they had never confirmed a romantic relationship… until now.
On 13 October, the pair officially revealed the truth in a new video titled Are Dan and Phil in a Relationship?
At the start of the video, Howell wasted no time addressing the internet’s most asked question, looking straight into the camera and declaring: “Alright, let’s get this over with. Are Dan and Phil in a relationship?”
Lester simply replied: “Yes.”
After a brief comedic walk-off, the two returned to discuss their love story in more detail.
“We fell into it hard and fast in 2009, and here we are almost 16 years later,” Howell shared, with Lester adding: “Stop telling me how long it was. So yeah… relationship, boyfriends.”
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The duo went on to explain that they never formally labelled themselves as boyfriends, with Howell reiterating that their relationship developed naturally and quickly.
“We just ended up living together, and here we are,” he said.
Elsewhere in the video, the pair opened up about why they waited so long to hard-launch their relationship — with Howell partly attributing it to his “extremely homophobic” upbringing.
“Without getting too long or dark or deep, I had an extremely homophobic childhood, okay?” he shared.
“I was deep in the closet… so in my mid-20s, I felt we had to hide the relationship because I was still hiding who I was from my friends, family, and myself.”
Beyond Howell’s personal journey, the two admitted they were also hesitant to confirm their relationship out of concern that it might overshadow their work — especially as fans had already been speculating for years through fanfiction, comments, and Tumblr posts.
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While Lester and Howell have now publicly embraced their relationship, Lester urged fans not to put them on a pedestal.
“No, it’s not always perfect. Don’t get it into your head that we are the ideal of human partnerships,” he explained.
Howell added, “We’ve had ups and downs like anybody. We’ve lived a thousand lifetimes of a normal person’s relationship, and I have no idea why we’ve survived.”
Towards the end of the video, the beloved YouTube duo set out some new boundaries for their fandom, encouraging continued shipping and fan fiction, but drawing a firm line at digging or leaks.
They also made it clear that they won’t be transitioning into “couple vloggers in bed or being romantic on camera.”
“No, that is not yours,” Howell clarified. “What we want to do is create content to make you laugh. That is what we’re giving — and we hope you’ll be happy with that.”
You can watch the duo’s full relationship hard launch video here or below.
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