News
Thom Bierdz Sings Video Letter To Y&R's EP Jill Farren Phelps: "Why Can't The Gay Chancellor Have a Date?"
In the “we-thought-we-have-seen-everything” category, The Young and the Restless artistically creative Thom Bierdz (Phillip Chancellor III) posted an open letter video-style to Y&R’s new executive producer, Jill Farren Phelps!
In it, Bierdz sings to Phelps a little ditty he wrote with lines like: “There is no gay love on the number one soap.” And, “Why can’t the Gay Chancellor have a date?” Bierdz is apparently asking Phelps to create a gay romance for Phillip and bring him back to the top rated CBS soap, where thus far there has still never been a telling of a gay love story.
So in his plea for the series to put some focus on gay love, Bierdz prepared this video complete with some retrospective clips from old soap magazines and television clips surrounding Phillip’s past and being gay, just in case Phelps is not aware, or to spike Phelps interest!
Watch Bierdz presentation and hear his tune and after the jump, let us know what you thought of it?
All My Children
Mark Consuelos Celebrates Kelly Ripa’s 56th Birthday on ‘Live,’ But Remember When Wendy Williams Outed the Couple as Married Before Anyone at ‘All My Children’ Knew?
On the Friday, October 2 episode of Live with Kelly and Mark, the morning talk show marked the 56th birthday of Kelly Ripa (ex-Hayley Vaughan Santos, All My Children).
During the opening segment, Mark Consuelos (ex-Mateo Santos, All My Children) humorously comparing his wife to both Gandhi and Groucho Marx, reflecting on both her comedic ability and peaceful ways.
Later, they went on to discuss the origins of her name and the most popular picks to name babies back in the year she was born, 1970. They were Kimberly, Lisa, and Jennifer for girls and Michael, David, and James for the boys.
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
Ripa recalled that she learned she was almost named Kim. However, their neighbors at the time had two daughters Kelly and Kim, which is what her parents wanted to call them, but they settled on Kelly and and her younger sister, Linda.
At the conclusion of the episode, Mark rolled out a huge cake for his wife. It was, “Happy birthday from all of us here at Live and at home.” Next, he cut the cake, and Ripa grabbed his face and gave him a “thank you” kiss.
Photo: JPI
KELLY AND MARK TRIED TO KEEP THEIR VEGAS WEDDING ON THE DOWN LOW
All of this brings back memories of how Kelly and Mark’s Las Vegas wedding ceremony went public in 1996 while the two were still on All My Children playing Mateo Santos and Hayley Vaughan. In essence, they were outed by then radio host Wendy Williams! They discussed it on the talk show back in 2024.
In fact, the duo hid their marriage from their All My Children castmates for months, until they found out Williams got wind of the nuptials and spread the intel on the airwaves.
The two recalled their secret wedding on a 2024 episode of Live! “We’d eloped. It’d been a few months at that point. We’d been married for three months, nobody at All My Children knew we were even dating, much less married to each other. We’re brushing our teeth and we’ve got Wendy Williams’ radio show on. We’re listening, and she’s like, ‘I’ve got celebrity dish!”
EYEWITNESS
Next Ripa continued, “The celebrities,’ I guess they had a broad use of the term back then, was the fact that ‘two soap stars from All My Children, Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos eloped in Las Vegas.’ There was this eyewitness that worked in the Clark County courthouse that said we eloped, and the news broke, and we had to tell everybody we were married.”
Live With Kelly and Mark airs weekdays in syndication. Check your local listings for times in your area.
Share your birthday wishes for Kelly in the comment section, and let us know your thoughts on how Wendy Williams broadcast the news, unbeknownst to the All My Children newlyweds, that they tied the knot in Vegas? Check out Mark and the ‘Live’ studio audience singing ‘happy birthday’ to Kelly in the post below.
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Beyond the Gates
TUNE-IN: ‘Beyond the Gates’ Banneker Homecoming Episodes, EP Sheila Ducksworth Speaks on Impact HBCUs Have in Real Life
As previously reported, kicking off today, is a two-part Beyond the Gates, when The Duprees gather to celebrate Banneker University’s homecoming weekend.
The producers and writers are taking an opportunity to spotlight the rich traditions of the long-held tradition of attending Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) through its fictional university.
The episodes are today on CBS and stream on Paramount+ on Friday, October 2 and next week on Monday, October 5, where in true Beyond the Gates fashion, there will be some surprising drama that ensues when someone shows up!
Photo: CBS
BANNEKER REFLECTS THE IMPORTANCE OF HBCUS
Sheila Duckworth, (executive producer, Beyond the Gates) spoke to Soaps.com to give some insight on the decision for the series to illustrate the ties that bind with HBCUs.
“It was important that we have this school as almost a character on our canvas, right from the beginning. Beyond even education, HBCUs have been pivotal when it comes to everything from economic progression and fostering a sense of community to the development of leadership skills,” explained Ducksworth. “From the beginning, we wanted to illustrate that what the Duprees are able to do in the world was a direct reflection of the impact HBCU’s have in real life.”
EVERYTHING HAS ITS PURPOSE
The EP talked about how purposeful the elements that integrate Banneker into the overall story of Beyond the Gates are including: the Dupree family door knocker that is a lion, the mascot for the fictional university, plus, the upcoming fight song that the cast will sing together on the Monday, October 5 episode, and the painting the hangs at Fairmont Crest.
That portrait of Vernon Dupree’s (Clifton Davis) father, George Cheeks Dupree, that hangs prominently at the country club, was named after CBS executive George Cheeks (now Chairman of TV and Media, Paramount), and as Ducksworth says of the legacy of Vernon’s father, “He was the architect of Fairmont Crest.”
So, are you looking forward to these episodes honoring HBCU traditions with the Dupree and the Richardson clans? What surprises do you think might be in store come next week? Let us know via the comment section below.
Days Of Our Lives
‘General Hospital’ Alum Tajh Bellow Fills In for ‘Days of our Lives’ Tyler Joseph Andrews in the Role of Theo Carver
After an earlier post on Thursday, October 1 about General Hospital alumni Tajh Bellow’s (ex-TJ Ashford) upcoming project from Issa Rae’s HOOPAE Digital, comes word that Bellow is temporarily stepping into the role of Days of our Lives Theo Carver to fill in for Tyler Joseph Andrews on the Peacock streaming soap opera.
According to TV Insider, Bellow will be making a one-day appearance next week on the October 6 episode of DAYS as Andrews was unable to make the tape date that was shot 10 months ago on a day last December. Andrews (pictured below) took over the role of Theo in September of 2025.
In Bellow’s upcoming episode as Theo, he will share scenes with Cherie Jimenez (Gabi Hernandez). A DAYS spokesperson tells the outlet that Bellow “stepped seamlessly into the role, and the cast and crew were grateful for his professionalism and commitment, albeit for only one episode.”
Photo: JPI
TAJH WILL BE SEEN IN MULTIPLE PROJECTS IN OCTOBER
As General Hospital fans know, Tajh played the role of TJ Ashford from 2018 to his last appearance in December of 2024. Along the way, he received two Daytime Emmy nominations for his performances as TJ, the last being in 2025 in the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Daytime Drama Series category.
In addition, bellow along with Y&R alum Loren Lott will be seen starting on October 14 in the new Love Island spoof series, The Compatibility Experiment. The show will drop exclusively on TikTok and the PineDrama platform.
The Compatibility Experiment gives a satirical look at reality dating shows, think Love Island! The story centers around Kelvin (Bellow) and Camila (Lott), whose relationship is put to the test when they join a reality show to try to win a the million dollar prize.
So, what do you think of Tajh stepping in for Tyler Joseph Andrews as Theo on DAYS? Perhaps, the soap opera liked his work that he might be considered for another role in the future bringing Bellow back to the soaps? Let us know your thoughts via the comment section below.
Mark Consuelos Celebrates Kelly Ripa’s 56th Birthday on ‘Live,’ But Remember When Wendy Williams Outed the Couple as Married Before Anyone at ‘All My Children’ Knew?
DAYS OF OUR LIVES Preview: Kristen Locates an Alive Sophia, How Much Does Rita Know About the Birth of Dominic Marino?
TUNE-IN: ‘Beyond the Gates’ Banneker Homecoming Episodes, EP Sheila Ducksworth Speaks on Impact HBCUs Have in Real Life
GENERAL HOSPITAL: Sonny Tells Dante, “I Don’t Want a Son Like You,” While Michael Tells Brook Lynn to Bide Her Time Till Chase and Willow Have an Affair
‘General Hospital’ Alum Tajh Bellow Fills In for ‘Days of our Lives’ Tyler Joseph Andrews in the Role of Theo Carver
REPORT: ‘Days of our Lives’ Puts Four Actors On Contract
‘Beyond the Gates’ Honors HBCU Tradition with Banneker University Homecoming Episodes
Alley Mills Returns to ‘General Hospital’ as Heather Webber
Judith Light Joins Cast of ‘Shrinking’ Season 4 in Recurring Role
‘Beyond the Gates’ Marquita Goings Delivers the ‘Power Performance of the Week’
Mark Consuelos Celebrates Kelly Ripa’s 56th Birthday on ‘Live,’ But Remember When Wendy Williams Outed the Couple as Married Before Anyone at ‘All My Children’ Knew?
GENERAL HOSPITAL: Sonny Tells Dante, “I Don’t Want a Son Like You,” While Michael Tells Brook Lynn to Bide Her Time Till Chase and Willow Have an Affair
GH Alum Tajh Bellow and Y&R Alum Loren Lott Star in New Tiktok and Microdrama ‘Love Island’ Spoof
GENERAL HOSPITAL: Ava and Drew Revealed to be Behind Framing Sonny for Sidwell’s Prison Beatdown
DANCING WITH THE STARS: Britt Stewart Visibly Upset After Shocking Elimination with Taylor Hanson
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Days Of Our Lives3 days agoREPORT: ‘Days of our Lives’ Puts Four Actors On Contract
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Beyond the Gates3 days ago‘Beyond the Gates’ Honors HBCU Tradition with Banneker University Homecoming Episodes
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General Hospital1 week agoAlley Mills Returns to ‘General Hospital’ as Heather Webber
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Jill listen up and bring him back and sure give Phillip a gay date or love interest!
YES! WE NEED SAME SEX YOUNG COUPLES ON Y&R! SEVERAL
I agree! Bierdz’s last stint on YR was too brief. All the hype when he came back a few years ago and then he was gone shortly after. I would love to see him back on and with a storyline that doesn’t shy away from his character’s sexuality.
I hope JFP responds to Bierdz at least one to one. I thought it was insane to bring back PC3 only to dispense with him. (This was so typical of MAB’s manipulation and destruction of characters and histories to advance plots.) It was a game-changer that surprised and then left us with nothing except a mess. MAB had the satisfaction of her plot and then had nothing of interest for anyone to do. Now where are the Chancellors? This is another legacy family that needs to be strengthened as Katherine and Jeanne Coooper are not going to live forever. Please, JFP and Josh, fix the bonds of this family, and give Bierdz a meaty storyline. How nice it would be to have a storyline that is organic and beyond the coming out stage of a gay man’s life. Maybe PC3 can find romance while doing business, working with other characters in trouble, or some such. PC3 is a nurturing soul. If there is commitment by Sony, CBS, the Bells, JFP and Josh to fix Y&R, this is an avenue that is worthy of exploration.
Oh my. I must visit LA soon. Just no singing. hahaha.
I love Thom Bierdz and I have heard it all about his lack of acting ability, but I do not agree. However, that little “ditty,” if you will, was kind of (dare I say) pathetic. I respect what he is trying to do, but I had a hard time getting through it. He almost sounds like he is drunk or high or something. No offense to Thom, honesty. It is just not a good representation of him. He is quite the artist, so maybe he should have painted something instead.
That being said, unless Philip was brought back like his on-screen mom for a short 6-week arc or something, I do not see Jill Farren Phelps wanting to add Philip back full-time, especially in light of the rumors of that they want the core (veterans like Victor, Nikki, etc.) to support the YOUNG newcomers.
CHRISTINE< I think YES they should have to have same sex young couples on the show! I disagree with you on mostly everything! I see a lot of your comments on Michaels pages and I love Sharon and Nick should be with Sharon! I hate Victor and Nikki they are so over and Chelsea sucks and bores me! Chelsea is so fake! We disagree on everything. I think Phyllis should go to jail for life!
steve, I think you misread what I said, which I did not say anything about NO same sex couples. I could care less either way. You must have me confused with someone else. What I said about Thom Bierdz is that there is not much for HIM given the way the show is headed not to mention (no offense to Thom Bierdz) but there are so many people who believe his acting is “wooden.” That is not to say that they could not explore same sex couples with younger actors.
I love Sharon and Nick too. I think they are endgame, but there is major chemistry with Michelle Stafford as Phyllis. I am fine either way, but I believe that Sharon and Nick will find their way back to each other.
I don’t know what you mean about Chelsea. I don’t recall commenting on her. I liked Melissa Claire Egan as ‘crazy’ Annie on AMC. I think Chelsea and Adam work for the time being only because each one is a social outcast and they appear to know all the bad deeds the other has done. I wish I knew what Maria Arena Bell had in store for them, but with the new team, I do not see them being happy for long.
🙂
WE NEED SAME SEX COUPLES ON Y&R! SEVERAL MEN AND WOMEN!
Isn’t it sad that this is what you have to resort to in order to be seen on your show. Jill, wake up and smell the coffee. Give us a good gay storyline. We do exist…you see us everyday in real life. We are your florists, interior decorators and flight attendants. All we ask is for a little same sex kiss now and then on screen. We’re not even asking for the horizontal mombo….yet!
Jay I think you should represent Thom Bierdz. You summed it up better than he did. 🙂
I am. Let’s dance. lol
LOL singing is obviously not one of Thom’s talents!!! He looks great though:)
I always liked Thom but this was kinda strange to me. He looks handsome with that beard!
GH fans when she JFP was EP over there did she not do away with the gay storyline with Lucas? In other words it never got off the ground or am I wrong.
Jill could suggest a gay on Y&R but in the end it would be up to Sony, and HR etc..
It would not fully be JP to bring gay to Y&R ..
It has been said- Sony is active in the new direction of Y&R..
I almost peed myself…This is great Thank you for posting this..I have tweeted it out to twitter ville
Thom – simply awesome! It NEEDS to be done.
I don’t have an opinion on having a gay character on Y&R. I’m not for it and I’m not against it.
However, based on his most recent appearances, it doesn’t seem to me that Bierdz is a very good actor. The failure to give Phillip III much to do may have to do more with Bierdz’s weakness than an actor rather than his sexual orientation.
This video really is odd and seems kinda desperate. The sound was bad and the singing was on the same level. If Bierdz really wanted to reach the producers to make his point, this video doesn’t seem like a very effective way to do so.
I just looked at a couple of Bierdz’s other videos. I’m not sure what is going on with him. In one, he is warbling (very poorly) about wanting a boyfriend. These videos lead me to wonder if everything is alright with this guy?
I can only add that the poor man has had a lot of tragedy in his life, maybe that is the problem.
Why do you have to have a gay person? Just because it is a hit show does not justify that gays just have to be on the show. Gays do not make the show. Just leave it alone and move forward in doing what you are doing.
I am not trying to be rude, but this man cannot act. He couldn’t act in 1986 when he was hired, and he could not act when he was absurdly, ridiculously brought back a few years ago. The suspension of disbelief they have asked us to accept with that storyline is way beyond even soap opera. The show has us logically supposed to believe that Cain could have passed for someone in the same age range as Philip. That would mean Cain would have to be old enough to be Chance’s father. I don’t know what the writers were smoking when they conceived this storyline, but it was an EPIC fail on EVERY level. It is best to just basically forget the character and pull a Bobby Martin with him.
Totally agree that was Louise Marie Latham’s idea then MAB just puonded on more. This show has it’s work cut out for it on all levels.
It really was a bad idea. I think the writers quickly realized their mistake after Bierdz filmed about 2 scenes and it was obvious that this guy couldn’t act. There was no “pay off” from it probably because they realized Bierdz’s wooden acting couldn’t do it.
The really bad thing about it was how it impacted viable characters: Jill, Kay, and Nina had a legitimate sense of loss when Phillip III was “dead.” This allowed for scenes where they could discuss Phillip and his loss meant something. By rewriting it so Phillip III was alive and living in Australia, a lot of the subsequent action by them (Jill in particular) made no sense. For example, why did Jill seem so emotionally attached to Cane when she knew her long-presumed dead and dearly missed son was still alive yet she rarely mentioned him and never seemed to visit him? It kinda made sense if you thought Jill was, on some level, viewing Cane as a “substitute son” for her dead first born. It made NO sense when Jill knew Phillip III was still alive.
What exactly were the viewers suppose to make of these women after we learned Phillip III was still alive? These three chatted about his loss for almost 20 years and how much they missed him. Once they learned he was alive and kicking, they seem to forget about him completely.
Given his lousy acting and the amount of time that had passed, in hindsight, it would have been better if Phillip III had just remained “dead.” Bringing Bierdz back for the type of storyline that he is (poorly) crooning about in this video definitely is not the answer. Gay, straight, bisexual, asexual, transgender —- Phillip III, as played by Bierdz, really needs to just stay away.
I shudder thinking about having to “survive” the inane storyline but, it might be worth it for the writers to revisit Phillip III’s death again and put Phillip BACK into the grave —- revealing that this Phillip III is a fake and a con artist while the real one died back in 1989. Mercifully, sparing us from any more scenes with the wooden acting of Bierdz.
Barbara from Atlanta – not to mention the lack of story with Philip and Nina’s son, Chance. Speaking of which, they will probably have to recast if they ever want to explore that again because I heard the actor has enlisted in the service.
Does anyone else think that Thom has completely lost his marbles? If you watch some of his other videos, he just seems very… off. I understand him wanting a storyline, which I think a lot of people would like as well, but this really is not a professional or sane way to accomplish it.
Yes, I feel the same way that you do. If I were Phelps, I wouldn’t bring Bierdz back after seeing this video.
How about some actor sings why can’t there be any Asian Americans on soap operas? daytime soaps have been whittled down to 4 and yet up to now not a single daytime soap can boast having an Asian American core family that has lasted on their soaps. How the heck can there even be any Asian american core characters when there are no supporting ones? It’s bec of racism. Asian american males can’t be portrayed as romantic leading men by racist hollywood while soaps are pretty much romance based. People would scream homophobia if this were abt a lack of representation of gays but many soaps have had gay characters and couples. days. b&b. y&r. atwt. gl. oltl. ringer. 90210. gossip girl. desperate housewives. ugly betty. glee. smash. revenge. But this isn’t an issue that hollywood cares for bec Asian americans are being discriminated against.
Thom, put down the crack pipe and go on with your life. It aint gonna happen
Y&r does not need a gay storyline.. I don’t care to watch one and it would cause me to tune out..