Lorraine Kelly admits social media account dedicated to her is ‘really hurtful’ despite previously brushing it off: ‘It’s sad’
Lorraine Kelly has revealed she finds a social media account tracking her absences from her ITV show “really hurtful”.
The 65-year-old presenter has spoken out about the X/Twitter account that monitors how often she hosts her self-titled breakfast programme.
Despite previously laughing off the account, Kelly has now admitted in an interview with The Guardian that the scrutiny affects her and admitted: “It’s really hurtful, actually. It really is. I’ve not spoken about it before,” she said.
The Scottish TV star emphasised she is “a grafter” who works “really hard” and has been in broadcasting for four decades.
The account, @LorraineKWatch, describes itself as the “self-appointed attendance officer of daytime TV” and has amassed over 26,000 followers.
It regularly posts updates on whether Kelly hosts her own show, often going viral with its oddly specific tracking 0 with the account last year posting that Kelly had hosted just 59.7% of episodes of her self-titled show.
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Recent posts have highlighted when Kelly appears on other media while absent from her own programme, as one tweet read: “Despite not hosting her own show this morning, #Lorraine is currently appearing on BBC Radio 2… at the same time her self-titled ITV show airs.”
As of a recent update from the account, Kelly’s hosting stats currently stand at 67.5%, with the star explaining she initially reduced her schedule to care for her ill mother.
“Initially, it was for my mum who has been ill,” she told The Guardian before adding that she realised she enjoyed having Fridays off and wanted more time for other pursuits.
“As I’m getting older, I want to do other things – more writing, all of that. Mate, I’ve been doing this for 40 years, working my arse off,” Kelly said.
The TV host published her first novel last year and recently became a grandmother, and she pointed out that her reduced schedule brings her “into line with everyone else” at ITV.
Kelly previously appeared to take the account in her stride when speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour.
“The amount of space I occupy in people’s heads is quite bizarre. It’s hilarious, it’s fine, I don’t mind,” she said at the time, but her feelings have clearly changed as the account gained popularity.
“Maybe it just started off as a wee joke, but it’s the way that everyone piles on. It starts off as a wee tiny thing, and it gets bigger and bigger. I find it really sad,” she told The Guardian.
She acknowledged that the show bearing her name makes it a target for commentary and added: “I get that 100% because This Morning is just called This Morning and GMB is just GMB.”
The anonymous creator of the account spoke to Metro in January about their intentions and said: “I hope it doesn’t come across as being critical because it wasn’t meant to be like that.”
They stressed it was “a joke at the end of the day” and “never meant to be serious”.
The account holder also vowed to respect Kelly’s wishes if she wanted it to stop and said: “I don’t know how much life is left in it, but I’ll continue for now. X can be a horrible place, so if I can bring something that’s a bit of fun that can make people laugh, then why not?”