Reality TV star Sophie Blackley called out the manager of a Virgin Australia Lounge for allegedly asking her to cover up before boarding a flight.
The 26-year-old shared a post on social media, insisting there was nothing overly revealing about her airport outfit.
Some prude critics, however, disagreed with her and said, “You look like a spaceman. Go cover up and have pride and some integrity.”
Highlights
- Reality TV star Sophie Blackley shared a social media post about her disagreement with a Virgin Australia Lounge manager.
- She claimed the manager asked her to cover up inside the lounge.
- Sophie gained popularity on the reality TV dating series FBoy Island Australia in 2023.
Sophie Blackley claimed a Virgin Australia Lounge manager asked her to cover up before boarding a flight
Image credits: sophiekaos_
In a social media post this week, Sophie Blackley complained that her airport dress code was scrutinized by a Virgin Australia Lounge manager.
The FBoy Island contestant was wearing a burgundy leotard, which had a teardrop-shaped cut-out design that put the majority of her back on display.
Image credits: sophiekaos_
The reality TV star said she was surprised when the manager asked her to “cover up.”
“Virgin Australia Lounge manager just asked me to cover my BACK??? Is she from another planet?” said the angry star.
The FBoy Island contestant insisted her outfit was not that revealing
Image credits: sophiekaos_
The Terms and Conditions for Virgin’s Lounge reportedly claim that passengers and users are meant to follow “smart casual dress standards” at all times.
“Virgin Australia reserves the right to deny entry to the Lounge to any person who does not meet appropriate dress standards, in its absolute discretion,” the terms and conditions said.
Image credits: BetterMe
Sophie was thrust into the limelight when she joined the reality TV dating series FBoy Island Australia in 2023.
The show revolved around three women trying to find love among a lineup of 24 men, half of whom were Nice Guys, while the other half were FBoys.
Sophie gained popularity on the reality TV dating series FBoy Island Australia in 2023
Image credits: loungeindex
Molly O’Halloran and Ziara Rae found two Nice Guys, while Sophie fell for FBoy Joshy Allen.
Hours before the finale of the show aired, she and her flame Joshy confirmed their breakup in June of the same year.
Image credits: YahooLifestyleAu
“To be fair on, on our end, I think jumping into something after such a short time [is hard], especially as we live interstate,” she told news.com.au.
She described Joshy as “business-focused” and said that’s one of the reasons she felt attracted to him.
“He’s very dedicated and so am I. And you don’t wanna ruin the friendship, I don’t think, especially from such a short amount of time,” she said. “I cherished that much more than jumping into something.”
Image credits: sophiekaos_
Joshy also said at the time, “We're still really good friends and we still chat. We would rather just respect each other, be friends and just go from there.”
After Sophie's airport lounge outfit went viral, netizens had plenty to say.
Netizens called her outfit “classless” and claimed she shouldn't wear workout gear on a plane
Image credits: loungeindex
"You can't go for your little job club or matcha latte in the lounge, so take a hike princess,” one said.
“Who wants to sit on a sweaty chair after she gets up, but as usual no one else exists but them,” one commented.
Another called it “classless” and said she shouldn’t wear her “workout gear on a plane.”
Image credits: sophiekaos_
In an unrelated incident, Virgin Australia’s lounge in a Melbourne airport was forced to apologize to a mother-of-two named Elise Turner.
Elise was pumping breast milk when she was asked to leave the lounge and breastfeed in a bathroom.
“This is pretty unbelievable and I'm beyond furious right now,” Elise said on social media.
“I've been told that I can't sit here in the Virgin lounge as a paying business class ticket-holder to express breast milk,” she continued.
The mother said in her post that she asked the staff member whether she made her own dinner “in a shared bathroom, a public bathroom or a public toilet.”
Virgin Australia was forced to apologize to a mother-of-two for asking her to leave because she was breastfeeding
“The staff member's reply was that I am making her and other people uncomfortable,” she said. “And then she put her hand on my arm and asked me to leave the lounge.”
“This is just disgusting,” she added. “This is 2025, and this is the sort of treatment that lactating mothers are expected to deal with.”
Virgin Australia acknowledged the incident, saying they were “sorry for the way this situation was handled.”
“It fell short of the high standards of care and customer service our team strives to deliver,” added the airline.
Netizens had plenty to say after Sophie's airport lounge outfit went viral
