The Apprentice star, Thomas Skinner, has broken his silence after it was reported he would be ‘suing the BBC for rigging voting’ following his early exit from Strictly Come Dancing

The Apprentice star, Thomas Skinner, has broken his silence after it was reported he would be ‘suing the BBC’ for rigged voting claims following his early exit from Strictly Come Dancing.

Taking to X, confirming he would not be at the Strictly final tonight after being the first celebrity to leave the show this season, the dad-of-three, 34, posted: “As most of you will have seen in the papers, I won’t be at the final of Strictly Come Dancing tonight. First thing I wanna say is this…. I spoke with my lovely dance partner, Amy Dowden to make sure she was okay with me not attending.

“She’s a good person and a good friend now, I’d never let her down. When I got given the opportunity to do Strictly back in April, I was buzzing. Not because I can dance…. I can’t. But because I really wanted to test myself and Learn something completely out of my comfort zone.”

Thomas Skinner claims he received an anonymous email when he left Strictly, alleging he had ‘received more votes than it appeared’ (Image:

PA)
In a bombshell statement, Tom then claimed he received an “anonymous email” the night he got the boot from the show, which alleged he’d ‘received more votes than it appeared’, as he continued: “On the night I left the show, I received an anonymous email claiming to be from a BBC exec with stats, saying I’d received far more votes than it appeared and it wasn’t right. I’ve since had the email independently verified.”

Alleging that the email mentioned that the BBC was “very angry and nervous” after Tom met with USA Vice President, JD Vance, Tom continued: “That same email mentioned the BBC was very angry an nervous simply because I had met JD Vance (USA VICE PRESIDENT). Let me be clear, I’m not a political bloke. Never have been. I just love my country and am patriotic. I’ve been made out by the press to be this political figure. If anyone was to get an opportunity like what I did, they would have taken it. I still think it is mad that a man like me who sells mattresses out of a van can call someone that senior in the world’s politics a friend now.”

Tom then said he had asked to see the official voting figures, but claimed the email ‘couldn’t be shown to him’, adding: “I have asked to see the official voting figures to back up the ones I was sent in the email but was told they couldn’t be shown to me. And have never been shown in the history of the show.”

Insisting that he ‘genuinely respects’ the BBC, Tom claimed it was the broadcaster’s welfare team who advised he sought legal advice after his exit, continuing: “I have spoke about the email I had received to senior people and the BBC welfare team, who btw I genuinely respect. And they was the ones who advised me to get legal advice because of how unfair it all was. (This was not my idea).”

When asked to comment on earlier reports that Tom was taking legal action against the BBC, a spokesperson told The Mirror: “Strictly Come Dancing’s public vote is robust and independently overseen and verified to ensure complete accuracy.” Sources at the corporation also told the Mirror it hasn’t received any legal complaint or paperwork in relation to this matter.

In a further bombshell statement in his lengthy post on X, Tom mentioned show hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman, who are leaving Strictly when the current series ends tonight.

Suggesting their departure was “coincidental” after he claimed to have received the “anonymous email”, he wrote: “I also want to say this carefully. After receiving this information and having it verified, a very senior BBC figure has since resigned. I’m not saying that had anything to do with me, but it did feel bizarre. Also the main hosts stepped down the following week. Again, I’m not saying it has anything to do with me. It’s just all very coincidental. I’m just being honest.”

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Signing off, insisting he wasn’t “kicking off for attention”, Tom concluded: “I’m not kicking off for attention. I’m not saying I should’ve won either. I was rubbish at dancing we all know that. But love me or hate me you do have to appreciate the massive following I have, I can’t even walk into the local Tesco without getting stopped for selfies.

“I just believe in fairness and respect. I wish every dancer tonight the very best. They’ve worked their socks off and they deserve their moment. As for me I’ve got fish to sell on my stall and a family I love more than anything.”