The Traitors’ Matthew Hyndman reveals church tried to ‘cure’ him of being gay
Matthew is an LGBTQ+ contestant on The Traitors. (BBC)
Matthew is an LGBTQ+ contestant on The Traitors. (BBC)
The Traitors star Matthew Hyndman previously revealed that a church attempted to “cure” him of being gay.
The 35-year-old photographer and model, who is the co-founder of Ban Conversation Therapy, previously shared his own experience of conversion therapy in an op-ed for The Independent in 2021. As of 2026, there is still no ban on conversion therapy in the UK.
“How do I know that conversion therapy is still happening today? Because of what happened to me six years ago,” he began his op-ed.
He shared that while working as a missionary with 400 others, he was “wrestling with a growing awareness of a sexuality” we he claimed he had been “told for as long as I could remember, would lead to my eternal damnation”.
An accidental email sent by Hyndman, which disclosed his sexuality as a gay men, was received by 100 members of his congregation in Northern Ireland, including his pastor and family.
“It has its funny side, looking back now, but at the time, it felt as if everything that I knew had imploded, and everything that I feared so dreadfully was happening. I had nobody to turn to.”
He revealed that he received no support from his mission leaders, who instead demanded that he “undergo therapy and publicly, in front of my 400 fellow missionaries, confess and repent”.
“I am glad that I had the strength of mind to refuse, and recognise that I didn’t need to change or ‘cure’ myself. Somehow I got myself to London, where I found people who would help me build a new life and a new community. Now nothing remains from my old life except, after two years of silence, my family,” he added.
Following his coming out, one of his old churches formally cancelled his membership, citing “lifestyle choices”.
“That letter was sent in 2015, but I’m sure that similar letters are still being sent out today,” he wrote.
In 2024, Hyndman opened up about his experiences while exhibiting his artwork at the Bard Gallery in Edinburgh. He is currently participating in the fourth series of The Traitors as a Faithful – though that may change after his ultimatum for the Traitors last week.
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