Theresa May Was Makeup Shamed During Last Night's Election and That's Not OK

A BBC reporter has apologised after commenting on Theresa May's make-up last night [Photo: PA Images]
A BBC reporter has apologized after commenting on Theresa May’s makeup last night. [Photo: PA Images]

A BBC reporter has apologized after being accused of making “sexist” comments about British Prime Minister Theresa May’s “thick make-up” during an on-air broadcast of the election count Thursday night. Furthermore the suggestion was that she was wearing extra makeup because she had been crying.

“Sorry if I offended some by talking about May’s thick make up but politics is about the personal & emotional not just stats and charts,” BBC reporter Nick Robinson wrote on Twitter.

No doubt the apology was in response to the social media backlash he received from viewers who heard his remarks and took to Twitter to express their discontent.

Of course, opinions were divergent and many thought that the comment was just fine.

Whether people people found the comments to be offensive or not, shouldn’t commenting on the current prime minister’s makeup be completely irrelevant? Especially on a night when the politics should have been the only talking point? Would the same comments have been made about a male politician?

It isn’t the first time focus has fallen onto something other than Theresa May’s professional ability. Since taking on the role of prime minister last year, she’s been judged on a long list of her wardrobe choices. She’s been challenged on everything from daring to wear a skirt that sat above her knee, to opting for some bang on-trend animal print kitten heels. And who can forget leather #trousergate which practically broke the Internet?

Theresa May was make-up shamed last night [Photo: PA]
Was Theresa May makeup shamed? [Photo: PA]

Usually the PM manages to shrug off the intense scrutiny, but it’s still too bad that she has to deal with it at all. “I have grown used to the focus on my clothes and my shoes,” she told The Telegraph. “As a woman I know you can be very serious about something and very soberly dressed and add a little bit of interest with footwear.”

Focus has often fallen on Theresa May's heels [Photo: PA]
Focus has often fallen on Theresa May’s heels. [Photo: PA]

Maybe Theresa May wore more makeup than usual Thursday night to hide the fact that she’d been crying, maybe she didn’t. Maybe she wore more makeup simply because she felt like it. The point is, when it comes to makeup every woman should do whatever she wants, including Theresa May.

And while people have every right to comment on Prime Minister May’s professional ability, her campaign, her policies, and her speech delivery, what she is and isn’t wearing by way of makeup is entirely irrelevant.

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