Yes me too. I don't very much like her but that's no reason to doubt her. It's a really awful, horrific state when trolls are questioning a victim's appearance. Are these lowlives saying that because she didn't come forward... they need to read their own words, essentially ugly kids tell lies and only the pretty ones are assaulted. Let's put it this way - the poor 90 year old who was attached in Rochdale. Would the trolls say that she too is a publicity seeking, self absorbed old bird who just needs a pension top up? Go back and look at the footage of the interview, it's as clear as Saville was groping one of the Nolan sisters on TotP.
DS - this is victim shaming at a new level, be it Feltz or Nolan and this thread needs some serious moderation.
Is it any wonder Vanessa Feltz said nothing at the time - look at the response she got when she did say something. We know, don't we, that part of what prevents people coming forward is the fear of not being believed, or worse, having vile things said about you. Yet here we are again.
It doesn't mean that everyone who says they have been abused has been - but we do know that lots of people who no-one believed were abused, far more than anyone previously thought. So, now everyone shakes their head when an abuser is found out and wonders why nobody noticed or knew or did anything about it before. Yet when someone who doesn't fit the stereotypical picture of a "victim" says they have been assaulted, lots of people don't believe them. Or worse, use it as a platform to say nasty things about them.
However much of a publicity hound VF may be, she doesn't appear to be someone who just randomly makes stuff up. Given all that has been revealed about abusers, shouldn't she be given the benefit of the doubt? At the very least, please don't use it as an excuse to insult her about her appearance, FGS.
Is it any wonder Vanessa Feltz said nothing at the time - look at the response she got when she did say something. We know, don't we, that part of what prevents people coming forward is the fear of not being believed, or worse, having vile things said about you. Yet here we are again.
It doesn't mean that everyone who says they have been abused has been - but we do know that lots of people who no-one believed were abused, far more than anyone previously thought. So, now everyone shakes their head when an abuser is found out and wonders why nobody noticed or knew or did anything about it before. Yet when someone who doesn't fit the stereotypical picture of a "victim" says they have been assaulted, lots of people don't believe them. Or worse, use it as a platform to say nasty things about them.
However much of a publicity hound VF may be, she doesn't appear to be someone who just randomly makes stuff up. Given all that has been revealed about abusers, shouldn't she be given the benefit of the doubt? At the very least, please don't use it as an excuse to insult her about her appearance, FGS.
This happened in 1996 - there was no Twitter, no Facebook, no texting, no social media for the trolls to use to attack her in the personal and ultra direct way they do today. They'd have had to write letters to her by hand or write in to ITV to complain.
This happened in 1996 - there was no Twitter, no Facebook, no texting, no social media for the trolls to use to attack her in the personal and ultra direct way they do today. They'd have had to write letters to her by hand or write in to ITV to complain.
The subject matter obviously isn't funny, but the image of disgruntled pre internet trolls rushing out to buy postcards to send in to accuse her of making it up makes me smile
Is it any wonder Vanessa Feltz said nothing at the time - look at the response she got when she did say something. We know, don't we, that part of what prevents people coming forward is the fear of not being believed, or worse, having vile things said about you. Yet here we are again.
It doesn't mean that everyone who says they have been abused has been - but we do know that lots of people who no-one believed were abused, far more than anyone previously thought. So, now everyone shakes their head when an abuser is found out and wonders why nobody noticed or knew or did anything about it before. Yet when someone who doesn't fit the stereotypical picture of a "victim" says they have been assaulted, lots of people don't believe them. Or worse, use it as a platform to say nasty things about them.
However much of a publicity hound VF may be, she doesn't appear to be someone who just randomly makes stuff up. Given all that has been revealed about abusers, shouldn't she be given the benefit of the doubt? At the very least, please don't use it as an excuse to insult her about her appearance, FGS.
Isn't her problem that she craves publicity first rather than have a sex offender apprehended? She was someone in a strong position to go to the police compared to members of the public but it seems she didn't until he was arrested.
Amanda Holden is another, she almost boasted about her experience with Jimmy Savile at a hospital and told of being sexually assaulted by a well known comedian, both stories feature in her book but has given no indication she has been to the police.
This happened in 1996 - there was no Twitter, no Facebook, no texting, no social media for the trolls to use to attack her in the personal and ultra direct way they do today. They'd have had to write letters to her by hand or write in to ITV to complain.
Let me see if I understand you correctly: in the days before the internet, there was no means of publicly criticising people or insulting them?
Let's see now. You're a fat middle-aged woman and a celebrity gropes you unexpectedly. You attempt to out the celeb. Right there, in front of your boss. Said celebrity snorts and says "as if!" Everyone looks at you and thinks you were doing it for attention, after all, you're not very pretty, you attend the opening of an envelope and why on earth would a successful/married famous person want to touch *you* in a sexual manner? You're embarrassed and start to second-guess yourself, even though you KNOW it happened. He has a reputation for it after all.
Do you a) relentlessly push to prosecute despite the certain humiliation to you and possible loss of your career, knowing that there's little evidence, the cops will grill you to death, in the unlikely event it comes to court the rich celebrity's lawyers will grill you to death. and after all it was just a touch on your bum not a full-out "rape rape" so the chances of ANY consequences for the man are nearly nil?
Or b) think better of it and stick to the time-honoured grapevine method of warning others, as women in media have been telling each other about Rolf Harris for years?
Hell, even when it finally comes out people will be telling you to shut up because you're taking attention away from the paedo crimes nobody knew about with your piffling little groping stories.
Yes, why on earth don't these women out these criminals?
Aedin and Suzy_Cat....spot on.
Some people find Feltz bolshy and unlikeable. She's taken plenty of abuse over her weight.
Whatever one thinks of her, she's still a human being and not immune from incidents such as this.
She's also a well read, smart, articulate woman who doesn't come across as a 'victim' but that doesn't mean it never happened. As I said earlier, if she merely wanted to grab attention for herself, she wouldn't have picked such a public event which was ripe for scrutiny. She could have claimed it happened elsewhere (in a more private location, such as a dressing room) and embellished the details, where it would have been harder to verify.
Let's see now. You're a fat middle-aged woman and a celebrity gropes you unexpectedly. You attempt to out the celeb. Right there, in front of your boss. Said celebrity snorts and says "as if!" Everyone looks at you and thinks you were doing it for attention, after all, you're not very pretty, you attend the opening of an envelope and why on earth would a successful/married famous person want to touch *you* in a sexual manner? You're embarrassed and start to second-guess yourself, even though you KNOW it happened. He has a reputation for it after all.
Do you a) relentlessly push to prosecute despite the certain humiliation to you and possible loss of your career, knowing that there's little evidence, the cops will grill you to death, in the unlikely event it comes to court the rich celebrity's lawyers will grill you to death. and after all it was just a touch on your bum not a full-out "rape rape" so the chances of ANY consequences for the man are nearly nil?
Or b) think better of it and stick to the time-honoured grapevine method of warning others, as women in media have been telling each other about Rolf Harris for years?
Hell, even when it finally comes out people will be telling you to shut up because you're taking attention away from the paedo crimes nobody knew about with your piffling little groping stories.
Yes, why on earth don't these women out these criminals?
... and even worse you have people saying you are not attractive enough to have been a victim and nobody in their right mind would touch you with a bargepole! Yes, this has made it really easy for the next victim to come forward.
I admit that my first thought when i heard this, although not of disbelief, Harris is too vile and her story sounds credible, was that she could have spoken earlier about this and could have helped the victims that did come forward.
But now that i know she was spoken to by the police before, and just was not allowed to speak about it because of the trial, I feel really sorry for her, and i'm disgusted by people that took this opportunity just to abuse her.
Do you a) relentlessly push to prosecute despite the certain humiliation to you and possible loss of your career, knowing that there's little evidence...
Apart from the TV cameras and room full of witnesses you mean? VF was wearing a floor length dress - it would have taken some form of contortionism for Harris to grope her in the manner described undetected. It would also have been tricky for him to explain and indeed extricate himself had VF yelled out 'you dirty bastard!' and rolled over to show what he was doing.
Assuming her story is true, it us hugely bizarre she didn't exercise the above option or pursue it afterwards. Harris held nowhere near the kind of sway that Savile did, and video evidence is hard to deny. She could've wrecked his career completely. Instead she waited until he was convicted on other charges before 'bravely' speaking out.
I am not having a dig at her attractiveness, but she is far apart from what we have learned is Harris' 'type'. There appears to be no witnesses or video evidence, despite it taking place on live TV. Harris would not have escaped detection for so long if he behaved in this way with cameras and audiences present. I'm sorry, but the incident as described just didn't happen.
I am not having a dig at her attractiveness, but she is far apart from what we have learned is Harris' 'type'. There appears to be no witnesses or video evidence, despite it taking place on live TV. Harris would not have escaped detection for so long if he behaved in this way with cameras and audiences present. I'm sorry, but the incident as described just didn't happen.
She was on the news this morning and apparently there were plenty of witnesses and the footage has now been found.
Let's see now. You're a fat middle-aged woman and a celebrity gropes you unexpectedly. You attempt to out the celeb. Right there, in front of your boss. Said celebrity snorts and says "as if!" Everyone looks at you and thinks you were doing it for attention, after all, you're not very pretty, you attend the opening of an envelope and why on earth would a successful/married famous person want to touch *you* in a sexual manner? You're embarrassed and start to second-guess yourself, even though you KNOW it happened. He has a reputation for it after all.
Do you a) relentlessly push to prosecute despite the certain humiliation to you and possible loss of your career, knowing that there's little evidence, the cops will grill you to death, in the unlikely event it comes to court the rich celebrity's lawyers will grill you to death. and after all it was just a touch on your bum not a full-out "rape rape" so the chances of ANY consequences for the man are nearly nil?
Or b) think better of it and stick to the time-honoured grapevine method of warning others, as women in media have been telling each other about Rolf Harris for years?
Hell, even when it finally comes out people will be telling you to shut up because you're taking attention away from the paedo crimes nobody knew about with your piffling little groping stories.
Yes, why on earth don't these women out these criminals?
Well Plan B didn't seem to work did it.
As for Plan A ..... how do you know "there's little evidence" there would have been camera operators, sound, studio hands, floor manager, researchers, runners, make up etc. It may have been seen in the gallery and they chose to shoot round it because they could see what was happening.
I can't see Vanessa having kept quiet about it, there would be a director, producer, series producer, executive producer, the production company, channel 4, her agent and management...did she inform any of those people if so what did they do?
I don't buy this idea she would never have worked again, if she went to the please it would have been anonymous.
When I was in my early twenties, I used to work for a pensioner, doing admin work, computers, etc., for our local FA. One day, when I was standing by the desk, he stood behind me, and wrapped his arms around my breasts. I pulled away from him, bt said nothing.
Thinking about it today I would, technically, be within my rights to report him to the police for sexual assault. Back then (20 odd years ago), I told my mum, who believed me unquestionably. My neighbour also worked with the FA and got me the casual job and, as I obviously wasn't going back, I felt he should be aware of what happened. I was unsure whether he believed me but, as he had grown up with my dad, and had known me from a child, I think he knew me better than to think I would concoct such a story.
He would make me a coffee, the brand I liked, and we would have a chat. I enjoyed the old guy's company. So, when he 'touched' me, I was shocked and asked myself if I had done anything to give him the wrong idea. He was about 55 years my senior and, as I was brought up to treat my elders with respect, I was just being friendly. Why would I be anything else? Mum assured me that I had done nothing wrong, and I must not blame myself.
Several years later, at the christening reception for my neighbour's grandson this guy bought mum and I a drink.
The point I am making is that, whilst it is easy to accuse these women of 'jumping on the bandwagon', I can understand why they didn't report it to the police themselves, but why did they not tell an adult who would surely have taken it further? Of course there are questions : will anyone believe me? was it my fault? In the case of Ms Feltz, it was a tricky situation for her to be in and, if it did happen, she did the right thing by going to an ad break. But why did she not report it, at least to a superior?
She was on the news this morning and apparently there were plenty of witnesses and the footage has now been found.
This footage should be made public so we can see what really happened. I don't doubt it did but I'd be interested to see how obvious it was to the camera and if so why no-one watching reported it.
Assuming the pics of her with RH on the bed published in the last few days are from the same interview, given that she seems to be wearing a calf-length skirt that's pretty tight fitting, Harris would have to have been a contortionist with arms about five feet long to have got his hand up there as far as she claimed (in one version - that there are two versions of what she claims that differ on important points doesn't exactly enhance her credibility). Plus, as has been noted elsewhere, VF is several decades over his age of preference.
I don't need to see a video of Vanessa Feltz being groped by Harris, I believe her anyway. And i was previously a great fan of RH and never have been a fan of Vanessa.
wearing a calf-length skirt that's pretty tight fitting, Harris would have to have been a contortionist with arms about five feet long to have got his hand up there as far as she claimed
Rolf was pretty remarkable with his third leg. No, not that one, the Jake the Peg one.
I don't need to see a video of Vanessa Feltz being groped by Harris, I believe her anyway..
that's the trouble with it right there. She's accused somebody that nobody will stand up for, who won't be answering back. Just as when Justin Lee Collins got convicted, she ends up putting herself in the centre of the latest lurid media circus.
Rolf was pretty remarkable with his third leg. No, not that one, the Jake the Peg one.
It's surprising Rolf was not already being vilified, even before the sexual assaults were known, given these politically correct times and the fact he seemed to be turning a congenitally deformed person into a figure of fun in that song.
He has been a renowned groper of adult women for decades, not just kids.
Not THAT renowned, as there was no hint of it in the gossip/scandal pages, nor on any forums. The only thing that was alluded to was his penchant for young girls, on another site, by one of the same guys who started to bring Savile to people's attention. Harris was dropped almost overnight from all his children's programmes in the mid-90's, which wouldn't have happened if he'd 'just' been groping adult women.
Harris was dropped almost overnight from all his children's programmes in the mid-90's, which wouldn't have happened if he'd 'just' been groping adult women.
You think that happened because television controllers heard rumours about him?
Comments
I agree 100%
Ds misogynists are out in force on this thread.
It doesn't mean that everyone who says they have been abused has been - but we do know that lots of people who no-one believed were abused, far more than anyone previously thought. So, now everyone shakes their head when an abuser is found out and wonders why nobody noticed or knew or did anything about it before. Yet when someone who doesn't fit the stereotypical picture of a "victim" says they have been assaulted, lots of people don't believe them. Or worse, use it as a platform to say nasty things about them.
However much of a publicity hound VF may be, she doesn't appear to be someone who just randomly makes stuff up. Given all that has been revealed about abusers, shouldn't she be given the benefit of the doubt? At the very least, please don't use it as an excuse to insult her about her appearance, FGS.
This happened in 1996 - there was no Twitter, no Facebook, no texting, no social media for the trolls to use to attack her in the personal and ultra direct way they do today. They'd have had to write letters to her by hand or write in to ITV to complain.
The subject matter obviously isn't funny, but the image of disgruntled pre internet trolls rushing out to buy postcards to send in to accuse her of making it up makes me smile
Isn't her problem that she craves publicity first rather than have a sex offender apprehended? She was someone in a strong position to go to the police compared to members of the public but it seems she didn't until he was arrested.
Amanda Holden is another, she almost boasted about her experience with Jimmy Savile at a hospital and told of being sexually assaulted by a well known comedian, both stories feature in her book but has given no indication she has been to the police.
Let me see if I understand you correctly: in the days before the internet, there was no means of publicly criticising people or insulting them?
What age are you, seriously?
Do you a) relentlessly push to prosecute despite the certain humiliation to you and possible loss of your career, knowing that there's little evidence, the cops will grill you to death, in the unlikely event it comes to court the rich celebrity's lawyers will grill you to death. and after all it was just a touch on your bum not a full-out "rape rape" so the chances of ANY consequences for the man are nearly nil?
Or b) think better of it and stick to the time-honoured grapevine method of warning others, as women in media have been telling each other about Rolf Harris for years?
Hell, even when it finally comes out people will be telling you to shut up because you're taking attention away from the paedo crimes nobody knew about with your piffling little groping stories.
Yes, why on earth don't these women out these criminals?
Some people find Feltz bolshy and unlikeable. She's taken plenty of abuse over her weight.
Whatever one thinks of her, she's still a human being and not immune from incidents such as this.
She's also a well read, smart, articulate woman who doesn't come across as a 'victim' but that doesn't mean it never happened. As I said earlier, if she merely wanted to grab attention for herself, she wouldn't have picked such a public event which was ripe for scrutiny. She could have claimed it happened elsewhere (in a more private location, such as a dressing room) and embellished the details, where it would have been harder to verify.
... and even worse you have people saying you are not attractive enough to have been a victim and nobody in their right mind would touch you with a bargepole! Yes, this has made it really easy for the next victim to come forward.
But now that i know she was spoken to by the police before, and just was not allowed to speak about it because of the trial, I feel really sorry for her, and i'm disgusted by people that took this opportunity just to abuse her.
Apart from the TV cameras and room full of witnesses you mean? VF was wearing a floor length dress - it would have taken some form of contortionism for Harris to grope her in the manner described undetected. It would also have been tricky for him to explain and indeed extricate himself had VF yelled out 'you dirty bastard!' and rolled over to show what he was doing.
Assuming her story is true, it us hugely bizarre she didn't exercise the above option or pursue it afterwards. Harris held nowhere near the kind of sway that Savile did, and video evidence is hard to deny. She could've wrecked his career completely. Instead she waited until he was convicted on other charges before 'bravely' speaking out.
I am not having a dig at her attractiveness, but she is far apart from what we have learned is Harris' 'type'. There appears to be no witnesses or video evidence, despite it taking place on live TV. Harris would not have escaped detection for so long if he behaved in this way with cameras and audiences present. I'm sorry, but the incident as described just didn't happen.
She was on the news this morning and apparently there were plenty of witnesses and the footage has now been found.
Well Plan B didn't seem to work did it.
As for Plan A ..... how do you know "there's little evidence" there would have been camera operators, sound, studio hands, floor manager, researchers, runners, make up etc. It may have been seen in the gallery and they chose to shoot round it because they could see what was happening.
I can't see Vanessa having kept quiet about it, there would be a director, producer, series producer, executive producer, the production company, channel 4, her agent and management...did she inform any of those people if so what did they do?
I don't buy this idea she would never have worked again, if she went to the please it would have been anonymous.
In that situation and what she described there would have been witnesses on the spot.
Looking at a still I'd be astonished if he got his hand up her skirt and onto her pants and no one noticed.
Thinking about it today I would, technically, be within my rights to report him to the police for sexual assault. Back then (20 odd years ago), I told my mum, who believed me unquestionably. My neighbour also worked with the FA and got me the casual job and, as I obviously wasn't going back, I felt he should be aware of what happened. I was unsure whether he believed me but, as he had grown up with my dad, and had known me from a child, I think he knew me better than to think I would concoct such a story.
He would make me a coffee, the brand I liked, and we would have a chat. I enjoyed the old guy's company. So, when he 'touched' me, I was shocked and asked myself if I had done anything to give him the wrong idea. He was about 55 years my senior and, as I was brought up to treat my elders with respect, I was just being friendly. Why would I be anything else? Mum assured me that I had done nothing wrong, and I must not blame myself.
Several years later, at the christening reception for my neighbour's grandson this guy bought mum and I a drink.
The point I am making is that, whilst it is easy to accuse these women of 'jumping on the bandwagon', I can understand why they didn't report it to the police themselves, but why did they not tell an adult who would surely have taken it further? Of course there are questions : will anyone believe me? was it my fault? In the case of Ms Feltz, it was a tricky situation for her to be in and, if it did happen, she did the right thing by going to an ad break. But why did she not report it, at least to a superior?
yes, she was saying there were witnesses and they did notice.
None of them have exactly rushed to back her story up, have they? How very odd.
This footage should be made public so we can see what really happened. I don't doubt it did but I'd be interested to see how obvious it was to the camera and if so why no-one watching reported it.
It's surprising Rolf was not already being vilified, even before the sexual assaults were known, given these politically correct times and the fact he seemed to be turning a congenitally deformed person into a figure of fun in that song.
Not THAT renowned, as there was no hint of it in the gossip/scandal pages, nor on any forums. The only thing that was alluded to was his penchant for young girls, on another site, by one of the same guys who started to bring Savile to people's attention. Harris was dropped almost overnight from all his children's programmes in the mid-90's, which wouldn't have happened if he'd 'just' been groping adult women.
You think that happened because television controllers heard rumours about him?