Daisy May Cooper Faced Trolling and Career Anxiety After Significant Weight Loss

Daisy May Cooper has shared her experience of facing severe online trolling and shame following a 10-stone weight loss, admitting she worried her altered appearance might hinder her acting career.

The 40-year-old comedian, known for the sitcom 'This Country,' dropped from a dress size 24 to a size 10. While this change positively impacted her health, leading to relief from chest pains and breathlessness, it also exposed her to significant negativity online.

Cooper revealed in an interview with The Independent that the comments attacking her perceived funniness after her weight loss caused her considerable panic. "That made me really panic actually. I thought, 'F***. Is that going to affect me casting wise?' Will I be scratched off people's lists when they go, 'She can't be the funny big one'? It's so mad that as women we even have to think about that," she stated. She expressed frustration that women are still subjected to such judgments, adding, "There's also that thing where people are just shaming you for wanting to feel better and be healthy."

Due to the overwhelming negativity, Cooper has ceased owning a mobile phone, with her personal assistant managing her Instagram account. "People are so f***ing horrible and mean and say such horrible things, I just can't even go near it [her phone]," she said.

Cooper's weight loss journey began as a necessity for her health. At her heaviest, she experienced physical limitations like difficulty climbing stairs. Initially, she adopted the ketogenic diet, an ultra-low-carb eating plan. However, she later cautioned against it, telling the Daily Mail that the diet, which involved consuming primarily meat and cheese, led to kidney stones.

"Because all I was eating was meat and cheese, like Henry VIII. The pressure on women to lose weight – at any cost – it's insane. It's horrendous," she commented, critiquing the societal pressure on women regarding weight.

The comedian also noted that her significant weight loss and cosmetic procedures, including lip fillers, created continuity challenges for the filming of the second season of her television series 'Am I Being Unreasonable?'. She recalled suggesting to the BBC that a disclaimer be added at the beginning of the show to explain her altered appearance between seasons.

Cooper has been vocal about her past struggles with food addiction and unhappiness during her time at a larger weight. "I'm so for body positivity but when I was at my biggest I was at my most miserable and I had a massive food addiction," she explained on the BBC podcast How To Be In The Spotlight. "I wasn't healthy. I couldn't breathe when I was walking up the stairs. I was so unhappy."

She expressed anger at the notion that fatness is a prerequisite for women to be considered funny. "And I've had some messages like, 'Well, now you've lost the weight you're not funny any more'. What the fk? Why do women have to be fking fat to be funny? That makes me so angry. I champion anybody. I think everybody should be happy with their body. But I wasn't."