Strictly's Layton Williams admits ‘I never feel safe’ as a famous gay man
Strictly Come Dancing star Layton Williams hates using public transport because he fears being attacked by bigots after years of abuse.The West End star, 29, who is partnered with Nikita Kuzmin on the show, has revealed while the attention that comes with fame can be positive, some vicious trolls leave him feeling vulnerable. “On one episode of something like Strictly you would have millions of people watching,” explains Layton. “You are out there and seen and then you walk down the street, people say ‘hi’ and it is constant.
I don’t want to sound like Victoria Beckham but you can’t go too far without being pestered and it can have a mental [effect].” Trolls target Layton on social media, where the comments directed at him can be extreme. “It depends whether they are in a good mood or are drunk shouting at you,” shares Layton. “Sometimes when I do campaigns and things for social media I will look at my comments and I see things like ‘gay, sickening, disgusting, where are the manly men any more?’ I’d say 80% of the comments are dragging everything you are proud of being [down].
And I am like, ‘Are you all OK? As I think I am stunning!’” Layton, who is originally from Bury, receives such high levels of abuse that he doesn’t feel safe travelling on public transport. “I am not that well protected,” he says. “I get a bit uncomfortable sometimes.
People say to me, ‘Get on the Tube’ or, ‘Get on the bus’ but I don’t feel safe. Maybe it is just in my brain and nobody is looking at me.” Layton tries to travel incognito using hats and sunglasses, but some people recognise he is famous, although often they mistake him for Strictly professional dancer Johannes Radebe. “I sit there in my cap and glasses but what if there is one bad egg?” asks Layton. “What really annoys me is that people confuse me for Johannes.
