What is a Lost Mary? Phillip Schofield vape explained - is vaping harmful

All eyes have been on former This Morning presenter Phillip Schofield following the news of his affair with a younger male colleague and imminent departure from the ITV breakfast show. The 61 year old has conducted two recent interviews talking about the scandal - one with BBC’s Amol Rajan, and another with The Sun. 

Whilst speaking to the Sun, a number of viewers have drawn attention to the fact that Schofield appeared to be using what looked like a Lost Mary vape.  

A Lost Mary is a type of disposable vaping device. According to the official Lost Mary website, the “BM600 vape is the most popular disposable vape”. Because it is a disposable vape, Lost Mary devices cannot be recharged or refilled, and are instead designed to be binned after the vape has finished. 

Does Phillip Schofield use a Lost Mary vape?

In an interview with the Sun, Schofield was seen using what looked like a Lost Mary vape whilst he discussed the fallout of the news of his affair with a younger male colleague at This Morning. 

Showing off a “collection of blisters and calluses” during the interview, Schofield said: “I’ve been vaping a lot. I didn’t realise until suddenly it hurt, but I’ve been sitting looking up at the sky or out of the window, just staring into space. I just sit on the sofa and stare. I realise by doing that, I’ve blistered both hands.” 

As well as the vaping, Schofield said: “I am not sleeping, I am not eating. There’s a lot of Southern Comfort. 

“My mind is in constant, utter turmoil. I think back to regrets, forwards to… What do I do now? What am I going to do now? I do not think I will be able to walk down a street ever again. It is like everybody knows.”

He added: “I got dropped by The Prince’s Trust, which I understand, but it broke my heart. I’ve lost everything. It’s all gone. Telly was my safe space, the one thing I loved. Now I don’t know if I will ever work on telly again.

“I don’t know what my identity is any more. I don’t know who I am now. What happens in six months time? What am I going to do? I have the rest of my life now to try and plan for Steph [his wife] and the girls, and hope that I can look after them.”

Is vaping bad for you?

The UK Health Security Agency says vaping is “not risk free but is far less harmful than smoking”. Because vapes are still relatively new, it’s unclear at the moment how harmful vaping is in the long term, however there are some side effects that users can experience as a result of vaping.

According to Cancer Research UK, these include “throat and mouth irritation, headache, cough and feeling sick”. 

While vaping originated as a product to help smokers quit cigarettes, many people have started vaping who never smoked in the first place - including children, which has raised concerns amongst campaigners and activists.  

According to a new report from the BBC, vapes confiscated from pupils at Baxter College in Kidderminster contained high levels of lead, nickel and chromium. Some vapes also contained dangerous chemicals like those found in regular cigarettes. 

Most of the vapes in question were illegal and had not gone through any sort of testing before being sold in the UK.

David Lawson, co-founder of the Inter Scientific laboratory in Liverpool, which analysed 18 vapes in question, told the BBC: “In 15 years of testing, I have never seen lead in a device. None of these should be on the market - they break all the rules on permitted levels of metal. They are the worst set of results I’ve ever seen.”