Last night, I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here returned to our screens with ten brand new celebrities. From a castle in Wales instead of the beloved Australian jungle, this series has attracted a range of celebrities we may not normally see on the show, including author and podcaster Giovanna Fletcher.
If you’re a regular reader of Grazia UK, chances are you know exactly who Giovanna is – and not just because she’s the wife of McFly member Tom Fletcher. But for the Twittersphere, it seems she’s a relatively new character – and the commentary around her celebrity status is decidedly ignorant. ‘Giovanna Fletcher... famous for... being a... mum?’ one social media user tweeted last night.
‘She might be good, in your opinion, but did she get her opportunity to work in TV because of her connection to Tom?’ another replied to a fan of Giovanna’s. ‘Sorry but too many people on TV are there because of who they know. TV is the worst place for nepotism.’
In fact, the chorus of voices condemning Giovanna’s apparently unworthy celebrity status prompted a ton of replies from those who are very familiar with her.
‘For people who don’t know Giovanna Fletcher she’s a well-known author,’ one fan tweeted to hundreds of likes. ‘She has a high profile podcast, she’s a YouTuber/vlogger, she’s been on the west end, co-written a musical, and is a Children’s TV presenter, she’s the wife of Tom from McFly. And she’s lovely #ImACeleb.’
And they’re exactly right. Not only has Fletcher authored more than 15 books, her podcast Happy Mum Happy Baby has more than 7million listeners – as she pointed out during a task on the show. With over 1.4million Instagram followers, her influence is nothing to scoff at.
Some may still be able to claim, ‘Well, she’s still only famous for being a mum’. And to that we say, only?
There’s a particular ignorance in deciding that being an influential mother in a country that has 19.1million families is not worthy of celebration or fame. Through her work, Giovanna helps educate, entertain and bring together millions of mums around the UK – how does that make her any less worthy of fame than someone who presents a TV or radio show we love?
Shane Ritchie, whose fame no one would deny, is best known for his role in EastEnders – a show that actually, at 5millino viewers per episode, has a smaller audience than Giovanna podcast. AJ Pritchard is too known for appearing on one of the highest rated shows in the UK, Strictly Come Dancing, and yet the average viewing figures for the beloved competition were 7.7million in 2019 – not far off Giovanna’s podcast at all.
So whether you knew Giovanna before I’m A Celebrity or not, how about doing some research and checking your own bias before brandishing her unworthy of fame? She’s certainly a star in our eyes.
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