Controversial Strictly Come Dancing contestant Thomas Skinner has apologised for picking up a journalist’s phone and leaving a Strictly press event on Tuesday.
The former Apprentice star, 34, exited the event at Elstree Studios after speaking to journalists who were interviewing him alongside fellow contestant former Chelsea footballer Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.
In a post on Instagram, he said: “To set the record straight off the back of yesterday. During one of the interviews, a journalist placed their phone on the table to record the conversation. I happened to catch a glimpse of the screen and saw numerous messages – not about Strictly – but about a personal story from my past.”
He continued: “I’ve been through some difficult times in my life, which I’ve worked hard to move on from. In that moment, seeing it there caught me off guard. I felt it was best to step away and gather myself.“
“This had nothing to do with the interviews or Strictly itself. I’m sorry I picked up someone else’s phone and I don’t even know if the journalist realised their messages were visible, and I don’t want to suggest any bad intentions on their part.”
Skinner finished the post by reiterating how excited he was to be a part of Strictly this year and thanked fans for “the love, kindness and support I’ve been shown so far”.
Skinner and his fellow Strictly contestants were taking part in roundtable interviews, where celebrities speak to journalists for a few minutes at a time before swapping tables with other stars.
Mail Online reported that the social media star had objected to being taped and grabbed a reporter’s phone before walking out of the interview.
Skinner’s casting has proved controversial among Strictly fans, since his casting came just weeks after he was seen socialising with US vice-president JD Vance at a barbecue during his visit to the Cotswolds this summer, during which time he was pictured wearing a Maga cap.
Others have taken issue with Skinner’s recent X/Twitter posts, which state it is “not far-right” to be “flying your flag and loving your country”, and complaining “it ain’t safe out there any more” in London, saying the city is “hostile” and “tense”.
This week, BBC director general Tim Davie defended the decision to cast Skinner in the forthcoming series, telling MPs from the Culture, Media and Sport committee that the casting team chose contestants who they believe will be interesting to the audience.
Davie added: “Clearly, we wouldn’t take anyone whose views are just beyond the pale, or we would see as completely unacceptable or not suitable, racist views, all those things, we wouldn’t accept them.
“But that’s not the case here, from what I know, I’m not an expert on the individual, per se.”
Skinner rose to prominence on the fifteenth series of The Apprentice in 2019, from which he gained a significant social media following and developed his catchphrase “bosh”.
He now runs several businesses, such as a gym and a mattress company. In 2023, he released the self-help book Graft: How to Smash Life and in 2024, presented The Men’s Room mental health podcast with former footballer Neil Ruddock.
Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One on Saturday 20 September.
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