This Morning presenter Georgina Burnett has faced backlash online after she pretend to be pregnant as an April Fool's Day joke, with some branding her 'insensitive.'
Yesterday, Georgina posted a black and white photo of herself on Instagram with what appeared to be a 'baby bump' alongside the caption 'News!' Her face is obstructed in the picture, as she looks down towards her stomach.
Naturally, fans quickly rushed to the post to question if Georgina was pregnant. But after she replied to some comments with a wink emoji, others suggested that the 'announcement' could actually be an April Fools, given it fell on April 1. One person commented 'Not funny if this is an April Fool’s joke,’ while another said 'I’m sure you’ve meant no offence, but this is in incredibly poor taste.'
A third commenter raised how fake pregnancy announcements often spark backlash, because they are insensitive to those experiencing infertility. 'This is deeply hurtful to the huge number of women suffering with infertility. Did you know 1/4 of pregnancies end in miscarriage and 1/6 of couples have trouble falling pregnant? You would do well to consider this before making “jokes” about such sensitive topics in the future,' they wrote.
Georgina has since deleted the post. She isn't the only star to face criticism for a fake pregnancy announcement. In 2022, Kerry Katona generated backlash for pretending to be pregnant on April Fool's Day.
In the lead up to April Fool's Day this year, pregnancy and baby loss charity Tommy's shared a post highlighting why fake pregnancy announcements are a sensitive matter. 'With April Fool's Day tomorrow, some people may be preparing to prank their loved ones by announcing a fake pregnancy,' they wrote. 'But, for the thousands of people in the UK struggling during or after pregnancy complications, fertility problems or loss, these fake pregnancy announcements are not a joke. Some people who have had a difficult pregnancy journey might not have shared this with their friends or family. And photos of scans or pregnancy tests can be hard to look at even when they're real, meaning pranks like this can be especially hurtful.'
Georgina has two children with her ex-husband, Andy Flawn. In 2023, the pair announced they had split from each other. To celebrate Mother's Day, this year, Georgina posted a heartfelt tweet that read 'I only have 2 children but ended up with 4 Mother’s Day cards so I’m feeling very blessed today. There isn’t a day that goes by (even on those days!) that I’m not immensely grateful for my kids. My heart goes out to anyone feeling sad for any reason today as I’ve been there xxx.'
Grazia has reached out to Georgina Burnett for comment.