Great British Bake Off star Laura Adlington has candidly revealed she felt suicidal after she was attacked by fat-shaming trolls on social media.
Laura starred in the 2020 series of the Channel 4 baking show where she reached the final of the competition alongside Dave Friday and eventual winner Peter Sawkins.
Laura has spoken about the abuse she received over her weight during her time on Bake Off and said the cruel comments intensified in the final week of the competition, leaving her feeling suicidal.
"When it was all really kicking off was on the week of the final. People were just being awful and it was really personal stuff as well.
"It was personal stuff like infertility and other personal things. People were saying things like 'It was no wonder you can't have a baby," she said on the Should I Delete That? podcast with Em Clarkson and Alex Light.
Laura added: "It just got really bad. I remember thinking, not I want to kill myself, but I remember crying in bed and being like, this would just be so much easier if I was not here, if I did not exist.
"That was a really low point for me."
The baker said she thinks more needs to be done to govern people online.
"I'm all for freedom of speech, but like, don't be a d*** - that's an actual person with a beating heart. It's f***ing disgusting what people can say and get away with."
Laura said she lost her confidence while appearing on Bake Off but was encouraged to stay on Twitter in case she found work on it.
She said: "But it was so bad for my mental health. It was awful. I remember when I got through to the final over Hermine, [and I was thinking] how the hell am I trending? And there were 120 Ofcom complaints about it."
She put a statement out to viewers on social media urging them to be kind.
Laura, who now has her own podcast called Go Love Yourself with best friend Lauren Smith, recently opened up about her experiences in regards to restrictions in a number of services due to her weight and BMI.
One of those services was IVF treatment, as Laura hopes to one day raise a family of her own.
Laura said: "The cut off point for IVF is BMI over 30, so she [the doctor] was like you’re probably looking at about 14 stone that needs to come off. And I was just sat there like, okay…
"We couldn’t do it, because I just couldn’t [lose] the weight…and I still feel an enormous amount of shame about that…I know I’ll live to regret it."
The best friends also spoke about adoption and how your BMI is a factor in the process.
Laura said: "It’s just ridiculous. It doesn’t make any sense to me when there are loads of kids out there who need a loving home, which we could provide in abundance."
She added: "That’s like saying to someone, sorry, you can’t adopt because you might get dementia. Sorry, you can’t adopt because you might be in a car crash in five years…it’s just fatphobia at its absolute best."
*If you're struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email jo@samaritans.org or visit their site to find your local branch
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