Tag Archives: controversial

Were Superdrug’s Controversial Celebrity Weight Scales Offensive?

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Superdrug has dropped it’s controversial ‘celebrity weight scales’ after the product was criticised by a leading UK eating disorder charity. But what did you think of it? Is it healthier to compare yourself to a celebrity or a number? These were novelty scales and surely they were just a bit of fun?

celebrity weight

The scales compared a user’s weight to that of a celebrity such as Cheryl Cole, the Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton and Beyoncé.

The scales included Cheryl Cole (8st), Kate Middleton (8st 6lb), Jessica Ennis (9st),  Ellie Goulding (9st lb), Beyonce (9st 2lb), Rihanna (9st 2lb), Adele (14st), Queen Latifah (16st) and  Melissa McCarthy (18st). I am not sure whether or not these weights are accurate but some of them do seem quite low. Especially as the average weight of a women in the UK is 11 stone.

The truth is, weight will always be a sensitive issue and young girls are impressionable. What is to stop them dieting to achieve the weight of their idol? Different people have different natural weights. We should just focus on being healthy, but peer pressure will always be there. For some the scales are just fun and novelty, but like most things in life, they can have a negative impact if used incorrectly.

 

Lorna Driver-Davies, nutritionist at the NutriCentre commented:

 

 “I am very concerned with the concept of celebrity weighing scales.  As a nutritionist I have no objection to women weighing themselves in kg- this is commonplace on normal scales and many women chose the metric method of weight, for example in France and Germany.”

 

“Comparing your weight to anyone- your friends, sister or colleagues would be a very unhealthy way to judge your own weight, so a comparison to celebrities is even worse.”

 

“These scales do not even take into account body fat percentage, height, BMI, waist and hip measurements and common sense on what is a healthy weight for an individual.  Not only is this concept deeply unscientific but also I believe it would encourage even more insecurity and anxiety about weight which is a sad situation.”

 

“These scales also set a very poor example to teenage girls who are often more susceptible to eating disorders and are easily impressed by celebrity status.”

 

What do you think? Should they have been pulled?

 

Del Toro kicks off World Sinema Season on Horror Channel

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Horror Channel serves up three slices of sinful celluloid in its World SINema Season – three premieres that highlight taboo, terror and blasphemy

 

Fridays at 22:55 from 7 Sept, 2012

 

The season kicks off on Friday Sept 7, 22:55 with THE DEVIL’S BACKBONE (2001) from Spanish Pan’s Labyrinth director Guillermo Del Torro.  Beautifully shot and immensely creepy the film explores two different types of horror – the very real horror of war and the exploration of horror experienced through a child’s eyes (Carlos), one of ghost’s and the supernatural.

 

Guillermo has stated this is his favourite work so far, and was a 16 year labour of love. It was influenced by early memories of seeing his uncle come back as a ghost and the creepy spectre that appears to Carlos was based on the pale faced ghosts in Japanese horrors like The Ring.

 

 

Next up on Friday Sept 14, 22:55 is THE ANTICHRIST (1974), which delves dangerously deep into the blasphemous aspects of demonic possession.

 

Ippolita, a young woman wheelchair-bound and sexually frustrated, finds herself under the spell of Satan himself when she becomes victim to an ancestral curse of witchcraft and possession. She starts seducing local men, only to kill them and an exorcism seems to be the only solution to stop the madness

 

The controversial Satanic orgy scene will certainly have a few tongues wagging with its implication of bestiality

 

 

The last in the season on Fri Sept 21, 22:55, is one of the most absurd, gruesome French horrors ever made – BABY BLOOD (1990)

 

Yanka, a young circus performer, is pregnant but morning sickness and fat ankles are the least of her problems when a new leopard from Africa is delivered to the circus – a beautiful beast hiding a hideous creature within.

 

And as the months progress, Yanka suffers from an overpowering appetite… for blood. Or rather, her unborn baby is screaming for it. And she is forced to kill and kill again…

 

 

TV: Sky 319 / Virgin 149 / Freesat 138

 www.horrorchannel.co.uk | twitter.com/horror_channel

Heretics launches with bold provocative collection

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Few things in life beat a cool T-shirt and Heretics, created by London based designer Tom Wells, are bold and provocative. They are being worn by not only men but also women as ‘boyfriend’ style tee’s.

Female icons Daisy Lowe and Lana Del Ray have been great ambassadors of the brand some of the tee’s (skulls and astronaut prints) are penned by celebrated artist, Alex Konahin.

New menswear brand, Heretics, launches its debut collection of striking and distinctive printed T-shirts aimed at fashion-conscious men. With T-shirt weather fast approaching and trend forecasts looking bright, it is the perfect time for Heretics to introduce its first range, its flashes of colour, intricate detailing and sometimes risqué images complimenting current moods perfectly. Priced reasonably between £25-£30 per t-shirt the Heretics brand is already stirring an interest amongst other discerning gentlemen, its success stamped as inevitable.

By definition, Heretics refers to anyone who does not conform to an established attitude, doctrine, or principle. In a time where people are celebrating individuality and embracing boldness (Adele’s flicking of the finger at the Brits recently, for example), the idea of expressing oneself is paralleled throughout the Heretics line. Controversial, sexualised images of women are the feature of some of the pieces, one of which focuses on a woman holding a diamond-encrusted gun to her head with the words, ‘It’s All About Me’ below. Patriots will appreciate that the range is made in the UK in London in a bid to keep the company local; something which few brands can claim.

Some t-shirts in the collection feature urbane-detailed artwork by “Biro Man”, an artist who spent over a month creating pieces used in the range with, as the nickname suggests, a biro pen. A closer look at the Mexican skull design reveals the meticulous nature of his artwork with all of the artist’s precise detailing in all its glory. Other pieces in the collection are embellished with vividly intense hues. Flashes of colour used in the “Lust” and “Imagine” pieces are particularly striking and is a modern take on artist of the 60s and champion of the famous pop art movement, Andy Warhol.