Body shaming – it wouldn’t be a British summer without it. It’s that time of year when you can’t move for media images of famous people, generally women, in their swimwear, prompting inevitable public commentary. Is she wearing a bikini? At her age? At that weight? Shouldn’t she be in a one-piece? Isn’t it all a bit undignified? On and on it goes. There are vested interests in making those near-naked bodies feel as if they’re your business.
In these scenarios, the paparazzi’s cameras aren’t interested in sexualising their female quarry. Evidently, the brief is to make them look frumpy, out of shape, and past it. Especially if they’re in a skimpy bikini, and they have the audacity to be north of 40, over a size eight, or simply happy in their own skin.
