Exclusive: Gareth Thomas confirms he’ll be stripping off for ITV’s ‘The Real Full Monty’
The out and proud rugby star says he's proud to represent the LGBTQ and HIV communities while getting his kit off to raise awareness of cancer.
By Will Stroude
Gareth Thomas has confirmed that he’ll be taking part in this year’s series of ITV’s The Real Full Monty.
The Welsh former professional rugby player, 46, tells Attitude that he’ll be getting his kit off for this year’s edition of the charity series, which sees celebrities strip off in front of a live audiencein the name of cancer awareness.
This year’s line-up is reportedly also set to include Love Island‘s Hughes, former X Factor star Jake Quickenden, Hollyoaks actor Jamie Lomas, Diversity dancer Perri Kiely and former Grand National winner Bob Champion.
Gareth Thomas previously stripped off for the Attitude Naked issue in 2012
In another twist, the stars will reportedly be performing their full-frontal routine on the ice this year – let’s hope it’s not too cold…
“Ah yeah, I’m doing that! I am taking my kit off on the ice, that’s a scary thing, I’ll tell you”, says Thomas, who recently teamed with ViiV Healthcare and the Terrence Higgins Trust for ‘Tackle HIV’, a new campaign designed to tackle the stigma and misunderstanding around HIV.
“It’s for my grandad who passed away with cancer. And because of my grandad, my mother took my father to hospital and they found cancer – luckily they found in enough time.
“It’s a bonkers, crazy thing to do, but when you realise that you’re doing it for it eclipses the fear of doing it. You’re doing it for the people you love, so it makes it all worthwhile.”
Thomas, who came out as gay publicly in 2009, famously stripped off for the Attitude Naked issue in 2012 – an experience the sportsman says left a lasting impression.
“I’ll never forget it”, Thomas recalls. “The weirdest part of that wasn’t the getting naked, it was between the shoots when I had a sock on my c**k for about 40 minutes!
Gareth Thomas stripped off for the Attitude Naked issue in 2012
“I couldn’t be arsed to put my clothes on so they got a sock and they kept it over my c**k.”
He adds with a chuckle: “It was a big sock!”
Thomas opened up about living with HIV for the first time last year after being blackmailed by a tabloid journalist who threatened to publish a story about his HIV status.
The winner of last year’s Attitude Gamechanger Award says it’ls important for viewers of the Real Full Monty to see a man living with HIV getting naked on stage and living his best life with the rest of the boys.
“I have no qualms in saying everything I do in my life since I’ve started speaking about my sexuality and HIV status is to represent a community of people that I’m un-f**king-believably honoured to represent”, Thomas says,
“Everything I do is to represent where I come from, and that for me is the LGBTQ community and also the HIV community. Every day I live my life, I try to do it in a positive way to represent them and to make them proud.”
Tackle HIV, a new campaign led by Gareth Thomas in partnership with ViiV Healthcare and the Terrence Higgins Trust, aims to tackle the stigma and misunderstanding around HIV.
For more information visit tacklehiv.org and follow on @tacklehiv on Instagram and Twitter.