You might think Carol Vorderman would be affected by the sheer amount of online abuse she’s subjected to, but no, instead, the 63-year-old says, “I quite enjoy it.” Over the past few years, the former Countdown star has become increasingly vocal about politics online, regularly criticising the previous Conservative government – making her a target for those who don’t agree with her strong opinions.
Her new book, Now What? On A Mission To Fix Broken Britain, opens with some of the startling things public figures have said about her – including a post on X (formerly Twitter), where ex-Tory MP Marco Longhi calls her, “A person who obviously has bitterness, arrogance and envy in her heart. There’s no amount of plastic surgery or Botox that will cure that.” But does the criticism bother her, even ahead of her birthday on 24 December? Not in the slightest.
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Dan Kennedy/PA)“I quite enjoy it – they don’t realise, bless them, the trolls, that they’re a bit of my oxygen,” she says. “It’s like when the Tories came after me, I knew I was doing something right – so I’ll carry on, because that’s the way I’m built. I won’t shy away from it. Most of the responses from trolls are misogynistic or abusive – there’s no argument, there’s no debate based on fact. It’s just abuse, bless them.”
After years in the public eye – presenting on Loose Women and BBC Radio Wales, and appearing on reality shows such as Strictly Come Dancing and I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! – Carol says she published her first political post on X in November 2022. It was about Baroness Michelle Mone, who faced controversy over the so-called “VIP lane” contracts granted to some PPE suppliers during the coronavirus pandemic. That’s all detailed in her new book, along with a diary of her increased political activism from the end of December 2022 up until the recent general election.
To understand why Bath-based Carol decided to dive head first into politics, she says it’s important to take into account her background growing up in North Wales. She was “brought up in poverty, a free school meals kid from the north west, everything going against you back in those times”. She adds, “But for whatever reason, people gave me opportunities, and I’m a grafter, a natural workaholic.”
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Headline/PA)As a result, Carol says she’s been able to do things that “99% of people aren’t”. This means she feels “a sense of responsibility” to speak out. “I have a great anger at how the working class get treated, how they’re sidelined.” Carol isn’t unappreciative of the career she has had so far, but she’s aware of the new platform that social media has provided her.
“Don’t get me wrong, I’m very grateful, I’ve been very, very lucky. I’ve lived through the sexism, the ageism, every other ‘ism’ – fattism, thinism, whatever. I call myself an old bird with an iPhone – it’s literally just me screenshotting stuff. I don’t have a team of people or a newsroom to fall back on – I’m fascinated by that, because one of my big things is about communicating information. That’s what’s always driven me.”
Now What: On A Mission To Fix Broken Britain by Carol Vorderman is available to buy now (Headline, £22)
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