Ellen DeGeneres drove around in a car for her first date with Portia de Rossi

Portia de Rossi had not come out as a lesbian when she first started dating Ellen DeGeneres.

Ellen DeGeneres' first date with now-wife Portia de Rossi did not go as planned at all. The duo had to reportedly hide from fans and media, to cover their relationship.

During an interview with Radio 1 DJ A.Dot, the Oscar host who married the Australian-American actress in 2008, said: "We drove around in a car because we weren't supposed to be seen together."

The 58-year-old added: "Everyone was saying 'don't be seen' and 'what if this doesn't last and you ruin your career?'"

Adding on, DeGeneres talked about representing the gay community. She said: "I don't feel a responsibility to any group of people for any reason, I feel a responsibility as a human being with a big platform to represent kindness and compassion and equality and that's got nothing to do with the fact that I happen to be gay."

"I don't wake up in the morning and go, 'I'm gay let's go'. It's obviously a big part of who I am to some people, but I care more about being a good person and opening minds to caring about one another," she added.