YouTubers Dan and Phil Confirm Their Relationship After 16 Years of Fan Speculation

After years of speculation, YouTubers Dan Howell and Phil Lester have finally confirmed what fans have long suspected – they are indeed a couple.

The creators, who rose to fame together on YouTube in 2009, shared the news with their 2.9 million subscribers in an October 13 video titled “Is Phan Real? Dan and Phil Reveal the Truth.”

The video opened with Dan, 34, setting the record straight: “Alright, let’s get this over with. Are Dan and Phil in a relationship?” Phil, 38, smiled and replied simply, “Yes.” Dan then laughed, adding, “Alright, bye. Oh, sorry, you wanted more, did you? You want the juice? The tea? The blood, the tears.”

Fans have spent over a decade speculating about the nature of their relationship, with the duo often teasing their closeness online. Phil admitted that the constant curiosity might have been “partly our fault.” He explained, “We started filming YouTube videos together on the day we met – I would not recommend that.”

Dan followed up by saying, “We signed up to be professional entertainers to create content for you to enjoy,” but confessed that along the way, they “fell hard and fast” for each other. As Dan put it, “Here we are almost 16 years later.”

While the two never explicitly labeled their relationship before, they’ve lived together for years. Dan noted, “We just ended up living together and here we are.” Phil playfully added that they’re not “technically” together in the traditional sense because they’ve never formally said the words – but clarified that they are “partners in everything.”

Despite confirming their romance, both emphasized that their relationship isn’t perfect. “It’s not always perfect,” Phil admitted. “Don’t get into your head that we are the ideal of human partnerships.” Dan agreed, saying, “We have had ups and downs. Like anybody, if you’re a mess, we are a mess.”

They also addressed how the constant speculation about their personal lives had affected their work. Phil asked, “Is the relationship between us something that our audience has the right to know?” Dan added, “A big thing with sharing the details of your personal life is how it affects what you do. Because Dan and Phil, the comedy duo, and Dan and Phil, the gay boyfriends, it hits different.”

However, the pair made it clear that they’re not planning to rebrand as a couple’s channel. “We’re not turning into couple vloggers in bed,” Dan said. Their goal remains the same – to entertain and make people laugh.

Reflecting on why it took them so long to go public, Dan shared, “We have been held back from doing this for so many years because of all the past trauma and terror of what could happen in the future.”

Phil closed the video on a heartfelt note, addressing fans directly: “If you’ll have us, we’d love to just finally be ourselves and do what we love, which is really how this should have been this whole time.”

Dan echoed the sentiment, saying they hope fans will “meet us with the same energy.”

After more than a decade of quiet speculation and countless “Phan” theories, Dan and Phil’s confirmation marks a new, open chapter in their journey – both as partners and creators.