Great British Bake Off 2014: First leaver Claire hits back at 'fat shaming' Twitter trolls
Claire says she would 'rather be fat' than one of her online abusers
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Your support makes all the difference.Claire Goodwin, the first contestant to leave the Great British Bake Off on Wednesday night, has hit back at Twitter jibes about her weight.
She was attacked with comments such as “Claire looks like she enjoys eating cakes as much as she enjoys making them”.
On her blog, the speech therapist and amateur baker conveyed her shock at how openly Twitter users had insulted her, with no signs of guilt.
“It appeared, under their own names, proud of their malice and hurt. The subject of the nastiness was of course my weight,” she wrote.
Claire, 31, has battled clinical depression and general anxiety disorder. She discusses these experiences and her own emotional insecurities on her blog.
“When the press were given our photos and biographies last week, a few papers took it upon themselves to call me ‘jolly’," she said.
"Does anyone know of a thin, glamorous, non-red cheeked person being described as ‘jolly’?”
Claire pointed out that she would “rather be fat” than be part of the group of “trolls” who did not have anyone to monitor their abusive online behaviour.
“If we cannot as human beings monitor our own social conduct, than we must look to our companions to guide us. So maybe that is the answer,” she wrote.
The first show of the series, watched by 7.9 million viewers at its peak - enjoyed its second highest audience.
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The BBC has advised contestants not to “read, engage or focus” on any comments on their performance made on social media or through any other medium. The Great British Bake Off has not yet commented on these developments.
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