Reality TV stars fooled into agreeing to promote poisonous cyanide on Instagram

Three reality TV stars have been fooled into agreeing to promote a fake drink containing cyanide on their Instagram profiles.

TOWIE stars Lauren Goodger and Mike Hassini and Love Island series two’s Zara Holland were given “Cyanora” to promote as a diet drink. The prank has been exposed in a BBC Three documentary.

via Instagram @zaraholland

All three influencers were told the drink contained hydrogen cyanide and they wouldn’t be able to try the product before promoting it as it “wasn’t ready” – but they agreed anyway. None of the three stars seemed to be aware what hydrogen cyanide was.

The documentary, called Blindboy Undestroys The World, is headed up by an Irish prankster who wears a plastic bag over his head to protect his identity. He said: “We were very transparent. The product was clearly labelled hydrogen cyanide, and we wanted to see if they would consider selling it to their fans. Which would kill them.”

All three influencers were interviewed before being accepted to promote the product, in which they read out the ingredients of the drink. Hydrogen cyanide is a lethal poison used in concentration camps and on Death Row.

Lauren Goodger was filmed as she agreed to advertise the product and also bragged about previously promoting Skinny Coffee despite having never tried it. She said: “I’ve even had my own friends message me, ‘Lol can you get me some of that Skinny Coffee, does it work?’ They’re actually going out and buying it, and I’m like ‘you know how this works?!'”

Lauren with her agent in the interview, via BBC

Zara said promoting the product without using it was “not a problem” for her, before her agent stepped in and said she wouldn’t mislead her followers. In a statement replying to the documentary, Zara said: “Although I had read out the ingredients which included hydrogen cyanide, I did not immediately know what this was at the time. My agent did state that I would not promote a product without trying the product first, and we needed to be provided with more details. I would never deliberately mislead my followers or promote a product that was dangerous.”

Mike, who is now a personal trainer, said in his interview: “That’s absolutely fine. That’s not a problem at all. From what I know, that all looks pretty natural.”

via Instagram @mike_hassini

Lauren’s management has also since released a statement, which Lauren shared on her Instagram. It read: “Lauren was asked by her old management to attend a meeting to appear in an advert for a new water. There was no mention of what the water contained before the meeting. The money on the table was quite a large sum which was offered.

“Lauren says ‘I was asked to read a script which I did to screen test me for the job. This script was given to me at that precise moment. No deals were signed and it was an audition. As with any audition you people please and say what they want to hear. They asked me would I promote the drink without using it. In the heat of the moment I said yes and also said I hadn’t tried Skinny Coffee in the hope of getting the job. Of course I would never promote anything that contains poison and proper checks would have been made before any promotion. I also have never said I lost two stone using Skinny Coffee. That is a complete lie and I’m unsure where that has come from. I would never promote anything on my Instagram that I don’t feel is right for my followers and that I haven’t used. The sit down meeting after the audition was filmed undercover without my knowledge’.”

People have been commenting on Lauren’s most recent Instagram advert post regarding the documentary. Comments include: “So Lauren, have you actually tried it?” and “#cyanide”. The post is for a product completely independent to the prank.

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