'Thomas Skinner stormed out of Strictly interview in front of me - I heard what he muttered'

Every year, a couple of weeks before the celebrities take their first tentative steps on the Strictly dance floor, the BBC bring them to be grilled by the press.

This happy event takes place in the exact same spot every year - a room next to Elstree Studios in Hertfordshire where the series is filmed - and it always feels a bit like speed-dating as the stars are whisked from table to table to speak to all the different groups of entertainment journalists.

When the five-minute klaxon goes off, they are swiftly ushered on to the next lot, often mid-sentence.

READ MORE: Man 'snatched girl, 5, and sexually assaulted her' before mum heard her crying

READ MORE: Gogglebox's 'Silent Jay' unrecognisable and living abroad after co-star split and exit

I remember going to the very first launch, where dear old Brucie struggled to understand what on earth Tess Daly was saying to him (he soon got used to her Bolton accent). But in the 21 years since that moment in 2004, I’ve never seen a celebrity walk out of the official BBC launch… until today.

Thomas Skinner, a former contestant on The Apprentice who ends many of his sentences with the word “bosh”, came into the room looking pretty jolly alongside the rest of the stars, greeting us with relaxed waves and smiles.

He sat down and chatted with one group of journalists, giving them the required five-minute interview. But once he arrived at the second table, he remained for just a few seconds before muttering ‘I’m not doing this’. Standing up, he simply walked out.

Afterwards, as the rest of us fumed that we hadn’t got any words out of him, the journalists on the table he’d vacated were perplexed. They’d said nothing to irritate him, they insisted.

But one source who’d watched him said: “He got the hump. He snatched up one of the phones on the table and said he didn’t want to be recorded then he just left. We don’t know what annoyed him. It’s a mystery.”

Thomas, a right-wing Essex pillow salesman who endlessly praises Donald Trump and JD Vance, probably thinks it was all too “woke” for him. But if he can’t handle an hour-long interview session with a bunch of showbiz hacks, I’m not sure how he’s going to get along with the weekly rigours of training for Strictly.

Known for being very active on social media, first thing this morning he posted one of his ChatGPT-style speeches in which he declared he wouldn’t “say things just to keep people happy like others do”.

“I’ll say what I believe in, even when it’s not easy - because that’s what we need more of in today’s world,” he insisted. Except, in the event, he bottled it. Better luck on the dance floor mate.

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Threads.