Imogen Thomas, the former Big Brother contestant, broke down on TV, saying she wants the identity of the footballer with whom she had an affair with to remain secret, despite her not being given the same protection by the courts.
An injunction paid for by the married Premier League star cannot be named, and Imogen Thomas, 28, is banned from revealing any details about their affair.
Also a glamour model, Imogen Thomas tearfully told ITV’s This Morning she has no desire for her former lover’s name to come out and just wishes she had had the money to protect her own name.
She said: “I didn’t want my name to be out there in the public domain like this. I’ve been exploited. I feel really angry.
“I’m taking responsibility for my actions. I know what I did was wrong.
“I’ve suffered a lot and it’s been a really difficult time for me.
“As foolish as this sounds, I honestly didn’t think this would get out into the public domain. I always said I had no intention of selling a story.
“I don’t want his name to be splashed over the newspapers, or his family.
“I have thought long and hard about this, and I have had time to reflect – I do not want that at all.”
She added: “I totally agree in privacy for celebrities and I had no intention of ever selling my story.
“I had no intention of speaking about the man – I just wish my name was protected. I didn’t have £50,000 to get an injunction.
“I feel like I have been thrown to the lions and told to deal with it.
“I can’t deal with it. I’m coping with a lot of stress and pressure on my head at the moment. This has been such an awful experience for me.
“Yes, I’ve done wrong, I’m not afraid to say that – and I’m paying for it.”
Imogen Thomas, who appeared on Big Brother in 2006, told This Morning presenters Philip Schofield and Ruth Langsford she burst into tears when she read the gagging order.
She said: “It was about 7 or 8pm that I heard about the injunction and that it was going to court.
“I had a phone call from the other party’s lawyers and I was totally baffled because there was no way on earth I wanted this to come out ever.
“I honestly didn’t understand anything about it.
“I got sent an email and I had to read it through. I just burst into tears – it was so quick and I was so shocked about what was happening.
“One thing it said was if I ever, ever spoke I would be sent to jail. I thought, ‘I had no intention of speaking, it’s not my fault I’ve been followed and this has happened’.”
Injunctions have been used increasingly to protect the privacy of public figures called into question.
BBC presenter Andrew Marr this week revealed he had won a gagging order to prevent revelations about his extra-marital affair.
But he admitted he was now embarrassed by the injunction and would no longer seek to prevent the story being published.
