Amanda Platell, writing for the Daily Mail, said she initially felt sympathy for Myleene Klass after the presenter revealed she had discovered a then-partner allegedly about to have sex with another woman, but that sympathy has since given way to criticism of Klass’s public persona and commercial endeavours.
In her column, Platell described Klass as "a poor man's Liz Hurley in a cheap bikini" and said the 47-year-old had been "damned by her own words." Platell argued that Klass’s estimated £4 million fortune derives less from her classical music training and more from what Platell called a "multi-faceted media career, presenting in TV and radio" and a line of swimwear that Platell labelled "questionable." Platell added, "for reasons known to no-one – a cynic may suggest naked self-publicity."
Klass, a classically trained pianist, violinist and harpist who first came to public attention as a member of the pop group Hear'Say and later as a contestant on I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here, has in recent weeks recounted an episode from many years ago in which she said she discovered her then-partner, former bodyguard Graham Quinn, about to have sex on the veranda of their home. Klass said the incident occurred while she was celebrating her birthday with an unnamed female celebrity whom she had considered a friend. The account prompted public support from other women and a wave of speculation as fans sought to identify the unnamed guest.
Platell’s column criticised both the public airing of the episode and the commercial image Klass projects, suggesting the combination has eroded the sympathy Klass initially received. The columnist also noted that, during the social-media speculation that followed Klass’s revelation, several female celebrities were wrongly accused by fans trying to identify the woman Klass described as a hypocrite who "prided herself on her family values."
Klass built a media career after her early pop success, working as a television and radio presenter and promoting fashion and swimwear lines. Commentators and columnists who cover celebrity culture often scrutinise the intersection of personal revelations, branding and commercial activity. Platell’s piece is the latest example of opinion columnists weighing the credibility and motives of public figures who share intimate details of their private lives.
Klass herself has not, in the column cited by Platell, been reported as responding directly to the columnist’s criticism. The episode and the commentary around it illustrate ongoing tensions in British media between sympathetic coverage of personal disclosures and critical scrutiny of how those disclosures intersect with a celebrity’s public image and commercial interests.