By Samantha Bartlett
Copyright walesonline
Businessman and television personality Thomas Skinner has already sparked controversy since joining this year’s Strictly Come Dancing line-up. Following his announcement as part of the BBC programme’s cast, the Romford native disclosed that he had been unfaithful to his wife Sinead mere weeks after their 2022 wedding. The entrepreneur, who runs a gym and mattress business, was also photographed mingling with US vice-president JD Vance at a Cotswolds barbecue during the summer, sporting a Maga (Make America Great Again) hat just weeks prior to his casting revelation. Nevertheless, there is now an entirely different aspect about The Apprentice alumnus Skinner that is generating online buzz – his age. Following his debut performance in the opening Strictly episode with partner Amy Dowden last Saturday (September 20), one viewer posted a screenshot of Skinner, commenting: “Thomas Skinner is 34-years-old.” The message rapidly gained traction, accumulating over 187,000 views and hundreds of responses, with many viewers apparently believing Skinner was considerably older. One individual simply questioned: “34?! ,” whilst another responded: “What? No, seriously. What?” A third person posted a screenshot from his Wikipedia entry, stating: “He really is 34.” Meanwhile, another commented: “No, surely not!” These reactions followed widespread online criticism regarding professional dancer Amy, 35, being partnered with Skinner . Many viewers were not pleased with Amy, who recently battled breast cancer, being paired with Skinner due to his controversial reputation. One viewer vented on Twitter after the show: “THEY ACTUALLY PUT AMY WITH HIM. Hasn’t she been through enough. WTF BBC #Strictly #StrictlyComeDancing.” While another added: “Poor Amy. She is really due a break #strictly.” A third chimed in: “WHO THE F*** DID THAT TO AMY. WE NEED TO HAVE SOME BIG BIG WORDS. #Strictly.” A fourth also asked: “Why’d they do this to Amy? #strictly.” Despite some backlash, Tom said he is “over the moon” with the pairing as he joked he hopes Amy can teach him a few moves. After appearing on the 15th series of Lord Sugar’s business show The Apprentice in 2019, Skinner gained a significant social media following and developed his catchphrase “bosh”. He has since appeared on numerous TV shows, such as Celebrity MasterChef, 8 Out of 10 Cats and The Wheel. Skinner also released his self-help book Graft: How to Smash Life in 2023 and presented The Men’s Room mental health podcast with former footballer Neil Ruddock last year.
