Exclusive: Dancing on Ice star Matt Evers comes out as gay
"I want to show young people that how you're born isn't bad."
By Joshua Haigh
Professional ice skater Matt Evers has come out as gay.
The Dancing on Ice star, who’s set to return to the ITV series when the show makes its comeback after a four-year absence this Sunday (January 7), opens up about his sexuality publicly for the first time in Attitude’s Travel Issue – available to download and buy in shops now.
41-year-old Evers, who’s set to take to the ice with Great British Bake Off winner Candice Brown this weekend, says his decision to come out of the closet was partly inspired by the experiences he witnessed his uncle go through when he was growing up.
The American pair skater, who was previously married to a woman, reveals that his uncle died from an AIDs-related illness over 20 years ago, and shortly before his death had been tragically “banished” from the family due to the strict religious beliefs of his parents.
“He was part of the original San Francisco and New York Fire Island crowd back in the 70s and 80s. I didn’t know I was gay at the time, but when he was dying it hit me really hard that he didn’t know the love of his mum, my grandmother,” Evers says.
“They were strict Catholics at the tip of the Bible belt. I wasn’t aware of why his passing and the thought of him never being accepted by his own family hurt me so much until I realised I was gay. It’s scary, the difference between generations.”
Evers, who was born in Minnesota, goes on to add that the current political climate in the States was another driving force behind his decision to talk publicly about his personal life.
Matt Evers, shot for Attitude’s February issue by Gomez de Villaboa
“Donald Trump has given a voice to the bullies. Trump himself is a bully and I’m very outspoken about that,” he says.
“I live my life by example, and I want to show young people that what you feel or how you were born isn’t something bad.”
You can read Matt’s full interview in Attitude’s Travel issue – out now. Buy in print, subscribe or download.
Accompanying the issue is our Great British Escape travel brochure, in association with Hertz, which you can also download for free.
