Thomas Skinner has issued a defiant message just hours before his first live performance on Strictly Come Dancing, amid ongoing scandals over an affair and a Covid loan. The 34-year-old businessman took to Instagram on Saturday morning, sharing a video of his pre-show workout with the caption, “HAPPY SATURDAY!!! LIVE SHOW DAY!! TOUGH TIMES DON’T LAST BUT TOUGH PEOPLE DO!! LOVE YOU ALL. BOSH.”
Skinner, who is partnered with professional dancer Amy Dowden, will perform a Paso Doble to Battle Without Honor or Humanity by Hotei. In the video, he said, “Listen, tonight I can’t wait. I've got my tan on. I’m going to be like Patrick Swayze after a doner kebab feast. And remember: tough times don’t last but tough people do.”
The TV star recently admitted to a two-week fling shortly after marrying his wife Sinéad in 2022, calling it the “biggest mistake” of his life. However, the woman involved, beauty clinic owner Amy-Lucia O’Rourke, claimed the relationship lasted three months. Skinner has hit back at the backlash, accusing people of trying to “cancel” him. He told PA Media, “I had a fling, I suppose, it was nothing more than that, it was the one time, it was a mistake, then I woke up feeling absolutely terrible about it.”
He also claimed to have developed a thick skin, saying, “I've been portrayed as public enemy number 1. The abuse, the lies, the death threats — it’s all been exaggerated.” Despite the scandal, Skinner said his marriage has survived, with Sinéad forgiving him. “She’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me,” he said. The couple have since welcomed twins and are moving forward as a “fresh start.”
Earlier this week, the Mirror exclusively revealed that one of Skinner’s firms, the Fluffy Pillow Company, has not repaid a £50,000 Covid bounce back loan from 2020, despite Skinner boasting about turning over “millions” during the pandemic. There is no record of the loan being repaid.
