Apprentice star shares moving message from fan who planned to take his own life
Former The Apprentice contestant Thomas Skinner has shared a deeply personal message from one of his followers on social media who credited him with saving his life when he was feeling suicidal.
The 32-year-old businessman was a contestant on the BBC show back in 2019 where he booted off the show following nine weeks of challenges and trials. In the years since, Tomas has built up an impressive social media following - garnering almost 400,000 followers on Instagram alone.
Many fans delight at the inspiring and uplifting posts that Thomas shares - which often include his young family and give fans an insight into his personal life. For one followers, Thomas’s uplifting content was released at the right time as they revealed they were close to taking their own life until they watched one of his online videos.
Taking to Instagram on Monday, Thomas shared a screenshot of a heartbreaking message that a follower had sent him. The message explained that this individual planned to kill themselves - only for him to change his mind after noticing one of Tom's posts.
Thomas Skinner shared a deeply personal message a fan had sent him (Getty Images)
Tom is married to Sinéad Chambers and they are proud parents to three children (iamtomskinner/Instagram)Crediting Thomas for his change in opinion, the follower wrote: “Hey brother, I know you’re busy and a popular fella so you may not read this… But I wanted you to know that you saved my life.
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“A couple of months ago I booked myself into a Premier Inn for the night, under the false pretence of a ‘work trip’. I fully intended to take my own life and I didn’t want my wife and young son to find me." The follower then shared graphic details of how they planned to take their own life, and also explained they broke six years of sobriety by drinking vodka.
The upsetting message then had a happy ending, as the follower added: ‘I’d been draining all night, psyching myself up, and I just happened to scroll through Instagram. Watched one of you many early morning motivational videos from Dino’s, this it was just after your girls were born. You didn’t say anything particularly earth shattering or different from other videos of yours. But it hit me that morning. Your consistency, graft, joy when you mentioned you kids… I don’t know. Anyway, I just wanted to say thank you brother.”
Thomas himself was touched by the comment and shared it with his fans and followers. He wrote alongside the re-post: “This is the reason why I keep spreading positivity on social media. If it helps ones person, my job is done. This message made me emotional today. So many people are fighting demons that we can’t see. I’m so glad this person is still here for them and their family. Let’s keep going everyone. To everyone struggling, it gets better. Bosh.”
Thomas is from Essex and runs a company called Bosh Beds which specialises in manufacturing and selling mattresses. He has been married to his partner, Sinéad Chambers, since May 2022 and together they have three children; a son who was born in October 2020 and twin daughters born in June this year.
In a recent post, Thomas opened up about the fact his family drive him to work hard and achieve success. He wrote: “This is what it’s all about for me. This is why I graft so hard. For my family.
“I’m Back home from work chilling with my little boy Henry. My children are the reason I’m always laughing, smiling and getting up every single morning to give 110%. Feeling blessed. I may no be the best person to teach my kids how to count, but I promise you I’ll teach them what really counts in life. Good evening and hope you had a fantastic Saturday you lovely, lovely people. Bosh.”
*If you're struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email [email protected] or visit their site to find your local branch
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