Rhian Sugden posted a provocative image on Instagram on Saturday, modeling a bright red lace bodysuit. The 39-year-old model appeared to be in high spirits, pouting for the camera in the Ann Summers lingerie.
Sugden's post comes after she publicly stated that the sexting scandal involving Vernon Kay from 2010 still affects her professional life, comparing the lasting impact to a disproportionate punishment. She told The Mirror that while her tell-all book will address the scandal, she hopes readers will focus on her career accomplishments.
"People get less of a sentence for murder," Sugden said. "I'd understand if there'd been a full-blown affair, but there wasn't. Yet somehow, nearly 20 years later, it's still something that follows me around."
In 2010, Kay issued a public apology on BBC Radio 1 to his then-partner Tess Daly after explicit messages sent to Sugden came to light. Further allegations of contact between Kay and Sugden surfaced in 2016. The scandal resurfaced in the media when Kay and Daly announced their separation in May.
Sugden, who is married to Oliver Mellor and has a son named George, explained that she wants her career and businesses to be the focus of public attention, rather than this particular chapter of her life. She noted that in 2020, she claimed the scandal had harmed her career, expressing frustration that Kay appeared to move on from the incident after his apology.
During a Channel 4 documentary, "Page Three: The Naked Truth," Sugden stated that Kay "just got away with it" and that the scandal "ruined everything" for her. She expressed that it still made her feel sick that he resumed his presenting work, including the show "Family Fortunes," while she felt her own career trajectory was negatively impacted. Kay has consistently maintained that the messages were merely flirtatious banter and that he did not act inappropriately.