Daisy May Cooper Faced Trolling Over Weight Loss, Feared Career Impact

Daisy May Cooper has shared that she experienced significant trolling and public shaming following her 10-stone weight loss. The actress, known for her role in "This Country," expressed concern that her altered appearance might negatively affect her career prospects.

Cooper, 40, dropped from a dress size 24 to a size 10 primarily by adhering to the ketogenic diet. While the weight loss improved her health, it also brought about a wave of negative online comments.

In a recent interview, Cooper stated she no longer owns a phone due to the constant negativity and relies on her personal assistant to manage 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.

She elaborated that the comments questioning her comedic abilities after her weight loss were particularly hurtful. "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," Cooper told The Independent. She added, "It is women and it's still a thing. There's also that thing where people are just shaming you for wanting to feel better and be healthy."

Cooper revealed that when she was at her heaviest, a size 24, she experienced chest pains and shortness of breath from simple activities like climbing stairs. While the ketogenic diet was effective for her weight loss, she later cautioned against it, telling the Daily Mail that she developed kidney stones due to her diet of "meat and cheese, like Henry VIII." She criticized the intense pressure on women to lose weight, regardless of the cost, calling it "insane" and "horrendous."

Her significant weight loss and cosmetic procedures also presented continuity challenges for the filming of the second season of her show "Am I Being Unreasonable?" Cooper noted that the gap between seasons saw her lose approximately 10 stone and have lip fillers, which she initially feared would be jarring for viewers. She recounted suggesting to the BBC that a disclaimer be added at the beginning of the show.

"Am I Being Unreasonable?" follows two women whose lives take an unexpected turn. Cooper also mentioned receiving messages suggesting she was no longer funny after her physical transformation. Discussing her appearance on the BBC podcast "How To Be In The Spotlight," she said, "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. I wasn't healthy. I couldn't breathe when I was walking up the stairs. I was so unhappy."

She questioned the notion that women must be overweight 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."