So I sat down to watch the BAFTA Awards last night, I do love an award ceremony and a red carpet so it was to be a valentines night full of perfection for me.
Stephen Fry hosted the ceremony brilliantly, as always, and made some very funny comments and quips particularly the "Bag lady" comment to his friend, yes his friend and then, as is so the case now, the twitter police and haters came out in their thousands, yes that great thing us British love to do, complain and knock down anyone successful and enjoying "Their moment" under a huge spotlight.
You only have to pick up any publication or twitter to find this very horrible trait in our make up " Worsed dressed" "Red carpet failures" it goes on and on.
I think Stephen Fry did exactly the right thing leaving twitter even though I hear cries of "Attention seeking" and "Drama queen" Not one bit, not even a tiny bit!
Let's just take a moment to put ourselves in his shoes and to be honest, any celebrity or star turning up at any event or performing.
So you go to work, you've been working seriously hard on your project to be presented to the company (In Stephen Fry's case a huge TV audience) you are nervous but confident, you suffer with anxiety and depression but you are truly believing in yourself and your ability.
You pick your best outfit and hold your head high and prepare for your moment in the spotlight, the whole company is hanging on your very word. You nail it with a couple of harmless jokes and it's a triumph!
You leave the stage and make your way to the exit to go celebrate all your hard work which had seriously paid off in front of your piers and your audience, you are walking tall and proud of yourself!
As you leave there are thousands of people at the door waiting for you and then the hate begins, they line up one by one to tell you how terrible you are, you take every damaging hurtful comment in, now let's add to the fact that not one of these people could ever do what you have just done, you continue to take the abuse, your anxiety, self doubt and depression mounts, your moment gone and the negativity flows over and over again!
So, here is the question! What would you do? Stay around and keep hearing the abuse or leave? You'd leave, fact, and all power to you for doing so Stephen Fry, it's your twitter, your life, your self protection and mental health, it's your place to do anything you want to do!
Now if that's not enough, let's all wake up in the morning after a terrible night of hatred over frankly nothing and let's open the press stories to see how terrible we look!
Could you handle that day at work? No!
But this is showbiz where it's OK to hate anyone buy way of a faceless hurtful tweet, not everyone is filled up with self esteem, confidence and self belife in fact if you dig deep in showbiz most don't have any understanding of those words some days, it's why we do what we do, to find acceptance, no seriously!
So you take as much time as you need Stephen Fry and know this, you owned it, delivered it and did what not one of the haters could do - Performed a masterclass.
Take a bow and know you are very loved you national treasure and in the words of a man I met once "Fuck em!" ❤
