"Traitors" UK Star Matthew Hyndman Shares Story of Accidental Coming Out and Resisting Conversion Therapy Pressure

Matthew Hyndman, a 35-year-old artist from County Londonderry, Northern Ireland, and current contestant on BBC's The Traitors UK series 4, has opened up about a pivotal moment in his life: an accidental coming out that exposed his sexuality to his entire church congregation and family, followed by intense pressure to undergo conversion therapy.

The incident occurred 11 years ago when Hyndman, then 24, was working as a missionary aboard a ship in the Indian Ocean and South China Sea with around 400 young people. While grappling with his growing awareness of his sexuality as a gay man, he had been confiding in someone online through a three-month WhatsApp conversation. In a catastrophic error, Hyndman attached this entire conversation to an email he intended to send to his church back in rural Northern Ireland, inadvertently distributing it to 100 members, including his family, pastor, and lifelong friends who financially supported his mission work.

Hyndman described the immediate aftermath as his "life imploding, "leaving him with "nobody to turn to"and facing demands from his church to "publicly confess and repent"while undergoing therapy aimed at changing his sexual orientation—practices widely recognized as conversion therapy. He recounted lying about his sexuality when previously asked but reaching a breaking point with the accidental exposure. Despite the pressure, Hyndman refused to participate, summoning the strength to reject the therapy and instead relocate to London, where he found a supportive community that affirmed his identity as a gay man.

The fallout was profound: Hyndman endured two years of silence from his family, and six months after the incident, he received a formal letter revoking his church membership. He later reflected, “It can seem impossible to even imagine another life. You do not have free will with a loaded gun to your head, ” underscoring the coercive environment many LGBTQ+ people face in conservative religious settings.

In response to his experiences, Hyndman became a co-founder of the Ban Conversion Therapy movement in 2020, advocating for legal bans on practices that seek to change or suppress sexual orientation or gender identity. He has questioned the persistence of conversion therapy, stating, “How do I know that conversion therapy is still happening today? Because of what happened to me 11 years ago, as a 24 year old from County Londonderry. ” Note: Hyndman's age in the quote appears inconsistent with other reports placing the event six years ago when he was 29; this discrepancy requires further verification across sources.

Hyndman's story first gained wider attention in 2024 during an interview at the Bard Gallery in Edinburgh, where he showcased his artwork, but it has resurfaced prominently with his participation in The Traitors UK series 4, which premiered recently with episodes airing from January 9, 2026. On the show, the 35-year-old has been active as a Faithful, instructing Traitors on strategy in recent episodes.

LGBTQ+ advocacy groups have long highlighted the harms of conversion therapy, which major medical bodies like the World Health Organization and American Psychological Association deem ineffective and damaging, often leading to increased risks of depression, anxiety, and suicide among LGBTQ+ individuals. In the UK, efforts to ban conversion therapy have stalled despite cross-party support, with recent government promises for legislation remaining unfulfilled as of late 2025. Hyndman's account adds a personal testament to these systemic issues, emphasizing resilience in the face of familial and communal rejection.

His journey from missionary work to public advocate illustrates the challenges transgender people, gay men, and others in the LGBTQ+ community encounter when navigating faith-based expectations. By sharing his story on a major platform like The Traitors, Hyndman amplifies calls for protections, potentially influencing viewers in similar situations to seek affirming support networks.