Gay actor Neil Patrick Harris decided to come clean about his sexuality last year because he feared he would be 'outed' by a witch hunt. The How I Met Your Mother actor sensed members of the media were preparing to out him, and was determined to let his fans know the truth from him first.

The 33-year-old actor tells talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, "There was a little of media scrutiny heading my way. People were starting to ask for stories of other people that may have fooled around with me, and the last thing you want to do is talk about your private life based on scandal. I'm not a very scandalous person and so I didn't want to have to respond to some story, whether it was lie or truth - so I just made a statement and sort squashed the fires."

And since his announcement, Harris has been delighted with the public response, revealing, "For me that is the greatest ending to the story so far - that nothing really has changed at all. I'm doing nothing different and people aren't behaving differently towards me. ... People heard and they're like 'Yeah, and?' That attitude, I think, was great."

-Neil Patrick Harris Pictures

(This news article provided by World Entertainment News Network)