Britain’s TV producers cannot get enough of Thomas Skinner, the cheeky chappy entrepreneur and social media personality from Essex.
But the former Apprentice candidate – who is set to appear on this year’s Strictly Come Dancing – is also being courted by some of the most influential people in British politics.
Skinner was elevated to the highest right-wing circles this week when he enjoyed a BBQ with “proper gent” JD Vance during the US Vice President’s stay in the Cotswolds.
Conservative and Reform UK figures are besotted with Skinner, the 34-year-old former market trader who posts motivational videos of himself enjoying breakfast at Dino’s Café, ending with the catchphrase: “Bosh!”
One Tory source told The i Paper they see Skinner as a key part of the “posh-bosh” alliance which can destroy Labour’s shaky hold on the working-class vote once and for all.
But the often-brutal world of politics is a tricky game, and hype about outsiders can fade to nothing. If he does brave it, Skinner will face scrutiny about his private school years, business interests, and views on controversial topics like the small boats and migrant hotels.
Skinner’s flirtation with politics appears to have turned serious in recent months, with him posting about “flying your flag and loving your country” and how unsafe London is under Labour mayor Sadiq Khan.
He has even teased running against Khan in the 2028 mayoral contest, telling a Roger Scruton Foundation conference in June that he is “thinking about giving it a go in politics”.
A Conservative source, who knows Skinner, said the interest is genuine. “He’s giving very serious thought to running to be Mayor of London. He would be a formidable candidate.”
Would Skinner be interested in signing up to Nigel Farage or Kemi Badenoch’s parties? For now, he is keeping his own counsel (he did not respond to a request for comment). But the influencer – who has 700,000 followers on Instagram – has no shortage of admirers at Westminster.
“Thomas is a hugely energetic guy,” Farage told The i Paper. “I would happily talk to him.”
Another Reform UK source added: “He has appeal. He’s straight talking – people like that.”
Tory MP Danny Kruger, who spent time with Vance and Skinner in the Cotswolds this week, said: “He’s an impressive guy. I think what he’s saying has made a connection because he’s so optimistic and authentic.”
Conservative MP Danny Kruger, Vance and Skinner (Photo: Danny Kruger)Robert Jenrick goes ‘bosh’
Ex-Tory leadership contender Robert Jenrick – who sparked renewed speculation he is on manoeuvres by meeting Vance in the Cotswolds – is another fan.
Jenrick recently appeared in a video with Skinner to talk about tool theft, saying he too was “sick of the fact tools are being nicked”, before borrowing his catchphrase: “Bosh!”
twitter.com/RobertJenrick/status/1937201004560412903/video/1
So what exactly are Skinner’s views? Love of country is his overwhelming message, referring to England as the “absolute governor”. He also advocates for lower taxes to help the nation’s “grafters”.
In a speech for a recent “How to Save England” event, hosted by the conservative magazine The Spectator, Skinner argued for better childcare for struggling parents and more active police.
“Let’s be honest, they’re pussies at the minute,” he told the audience.
He has focused most of his anger on crime in the capital, claiming London was “getting worse every day”, and that the Labour mayor had “ruined” the city.
In June, Vote Leave mastermind Dominic Cummings offered Skinner his services if he ran against Khan as an independent.
Some think Skinner could remain independent, rather than tarnish his no-nonsense brand by toeing a particular party line.
Skinner who has been named as a contestant in BBC1’s Strictly Come Dancing 2025 (Photo: BBC/PA)But his reluctance to declare for Reform or the Tories may not be for long. The mayoral campaign – which will begin revving up in 2027 – is only a couple of years away.
“He could stand as an independent, or as a Tory or as a Reform candi all of those are possible,” said a Conservative source who knows him.
“He demonstrates remarkable political nous: he’s been very careful to associate with one brand or another at the moment,” they said – warning Tory HQ strategists they would have to “let Tom be Tom” if he did decide to join the party.
“Tom Skinner is at the foothills of something interesting – the enormous possibilities for the posh-bosh alliance,” the source added.
“It’s bringing together the traditional Conservatives in the shires and Red Wall, traditional Labour, white working-class voters.”
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Claire Bullivant – editor of the Conservative and Reformer Post website – said she thought both parties would be keen to add Skinner into the fold. “I think he’d fit in with both the Tories and Reform.”
Skinner’s closest tie to politics comes through an unlikely friendship with Dr James Orr, a Cambridge University academic linked to Reform UK.
The religious scholar is chair of an advisory board to the Centre for a Better Britain, a pro-Reform think tank currently raising money to build a “policy base” for Farage’s party.
It was Orr who invited Skinner to the “How to Save England” event in June. The academic also helped arrange the meeting with Vance, whose summer holiday in the Cotswolds was reportedly set up by former Tory Chancellor George Osborne.
Orr, said to have acted as a mentor to Donald Trump’s Vice President, told The Telegraph that Skinner had “extraordinary charisma” and was “highly intelligent”.
But he is cautious on whether Skinner will fit into the fold of a political party. “That’s really something for him to decide. It’s hard to see how the political infrastructure can accommodate him.”
Rupert Lowe MP, who parted ways with Reform UK earlier this year after a massive fallout, said he would be “delighted” if Skinner got involved with his new right-wing movement, Restore Britain.
Lowe said he enjoyed a drink with Skinner after the June conference. “I like him very much,” said the independent Great Yarmouth MP.
“He’s a very genuine, enterprising Englishman. He’s got business cunning. He’s got strong family values. He enjoys a pint. I can understand why Vance wanted to meet him.”
Tom Skinner is liked within right-leaning circles (Photo: Kieran Cleeves/PA)Private school educated but no ‘pot to piss in’
If Skinner does stand for election, there will be scrutiny over just how hardscrabble his upbringing actually was.
The former market trader, who set up his own company selling pillows and mattresses, said there were times he did not have “a pot to piss in”. But he attended Brentwood School, a top fee-paying institution currently charging up to £29,000 a year.
It emerged in 2019, while appearing on The Apprentice, that Skinner had a spent conviction for handling stolen goods.
“I wasn’t aware that the stock was stolen and paid the consequences for the mistake I made,” he said at the time. “My past is my past, I am now a changed man.”
BBC bosses appear unfussed by the incident. Appearing on Strictly this autumn could give Skinner the chance to raise his already-growing profile.
It would follow the model crafted by Farage, who saw a popularity boost after his appearance on ITV’s I’m a Celebrity in 2023.
Any handwringing from the left about Skinner’s ties to Vance and being too “controversial” to appear on the BBC show will only boost his standing on the anti-woke right.
Skinner will be focused on his quick-step, rumba, and jive over the next few months. But once the whirlwind is over, he will have no shortage of willing dance partners at Westminster.
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