Gogglebox star defends taking lavish holidays while claiming universal credit-Ruth Lawes-Entertainment – Metro

Gogglebox star Sandra Martin has travelled to places including Amsterdam and Benidorm (Picture: Channel 4)

Gogglebox star Sandra Martin has been on multiple holidays despite being ‘broke’ thanks to the kindness of strangers.

Sandra, who lives in temporary accommodation and relies on Universal Credit, has been on five holidays since Christmas Day and is preparing for a sixth trip to Malta.

The 62-year-old has enjoyed trips to holiday hotspots including Amsterdam, Portugal and Benidorm – all paid for by fans of the Channel 4 show.

She told The Sun: ‘I get a lot of hate for it because I’m always on planes but people gift these trips to me. It’s a miracle really, they must have spent thousands of pounds on me.’

Giving her theory on why viewers are paying for her holidays, Sandra continued: ‘People love me and I give them entertainment so they pay for my trips.

‘It’s because I’ve got such a large platform, I’m on social media every day and talk to my fans. People are bored and I cheer them up.’

Sandra said that Gogglebox fans are paying for her to go on holiday (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

She has been on five trips in six months thanks to the kindness of strangers (Picture: Channel 4)

Sandra, who describes herself as ‘broke’, has not worked for two years because of ill health. She also said she cannot work a normal job because of her fame.

The Channel 4 star said: ‘I get stopped every day. If I got a job in Tesco the queue would be out of the door due to my fans, they wouldn’t be able to cope.’

However, Sandra said she was ‘booked up until next year’ with holidays and events.

She said: ‘I’ve gone from Brixton to the Baftas to benefits and now I’m broke but at least I’m happy and busy even though I’m technically homeless, have no money or anything.’

Sandra has struggled to find a normal job because she is too famous (Picture: RTE)

Sandra appeared on Gogglebox from 2013 until 2017, along with pal Sandi Bogle, when she quit to seek out other career opportunities, including a stretch on Celebrity Big Brother.

Rumours of a rift between the pair started to swirl following Sandi’s departure. Sandra said the allegations caused her to suffer from panic attacks and denied having a fallout.

After Sandi quit, Sandra found another friend to accompany her on Gogglebox but claimed bosses weren’t keen on having someone with an American accent.

Instead, she decided to continue the show alongside her daughter, Chanchez Martin, but the move came with its own set of obstacles.

Sandra previously shared: ‘I didn’t want to talk about sex in front of my daughter on the TV, and I was also getting a lot of backlash like, “Where’s Sandi?”’

Eventually, Sandra quit Gogglebox in 2018 but said she was grateful to Channel 4 for giving her a platform.

Gogglebox is available to stream on Channel 4.

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