Megan McKenna has criticised a former MasterChef contestant after the contestant left a now-deleted Instagram comment suggesting McKenna was "not a good mum" because her son, Landon, 11 months, had not yet crawled.
In an Instagram video posted on Sunday, the former The Only Way Is Essex star said she does not usually respond to online trolls but felt compelled to address the remark. McKenna said the comment, from Bernice Marie — who appeared on MasterChef in 2017 and left the series in its first week — read: "Such a good mum he can't even crawl and is nearly 1... its shocking" followed by a laughing and a shocked emoji.
McKenna, 32, told viewers that Landon was "on the verge, moving and on his knees" and reiterated that "I don't need to explain myself" but wanted to correct what she characterised as unfair criticism. She said crawling milestones vary, noting that "crawling can be from seven months to 13 months, some babies don't even crawl, they just go straight to walking." She also said she planned to share the commenter’s Instagram handle in a subsequent post.
Followers responded rapidly, defending McKenna and sharing their own experiences with child development. Several noted that babies reach milestones at different ages and that skipping crawling is common, with some describing children who shuffled or moved by other means before walking. Many commenters praised McKenna’s parenting and urged an end to online "mum-shaming." Others addressed Bernice directly on McKenna’s posts, criticising the original comment.
The exchange prompted references to NHS guidance on infant development. The NHS advises that "your baby will probably start crawling (although not all babies crawl — some shuffle around on their bottoms) at around 7 to 10 months." The health service adds that caregivers should create a safe space for exploration and that if a baby shows no signs of moving by 12 months they should seek advice from a health visitor.
McKenna, who shares Landon with footballer husband Oliver Burke, married earlier this year. The singer and reality TV personality has previously documented aspects of her parenting on social media; in Sunday’s post she expressed frustration at what she called a trend of parents criticising other parents online.
The comment from Bernice Marie had been removed from McKenna’s post by the time of McKenna’s response. Neither Bernice nor McKenna’s representatives provided additional comment beyond McKenna’s Instagram video. The exchange highlights ongoing debates on social media about parenting standards and the scrutiny public figures face when discussing family life, as well as the role of official guidance in informing discussions about child development.