The video made me feel sick. It’s a specific kind of sickness, too, one that disturbs every part of your body, alerting every nerve ending and synapse to signal discomfort and danger. Women will be familiar with this feeling; it’s one we deal with far too frequently in modern-day society. And sometimes we get a stark reminder that nobody is ever really immune from it, not even global celebrities.
The video in question featured Dua Lipa and her fiancé, the actor Callum Turner, being hounded by paparazzi outside a restaurant in Paris. The clip begins with Turner bargaining with photographers. Lipa emerges, hiding her face with her hand as the pair attempt to walk away, telling the paps “no” and asking not to be followed. Of course, the paps don’t listen and continue aggressively shouting at the couple in between blinding lights from their camera flashes.
“Show your face!” one shouts in frustration before descending into an angry diatribe in French. “Dua, just give us one minute and we leave you alone,” he adds. The couple walks away with the paps chasing after them down the street. “Can you please go away?” Dua asks, while a photographer mocks her because she refuses to move her hand away from her face. Eventually, the couple simply turn into one another to face a wall, and the paps seem to relent. It’s horrific to watch, not least because some corners of the internet shared it as criticism of the musician for not cooperating.
The clip is a stark reminder that society treats women in the public eye as if they’re no better than caged animals. One particularly myopic criticism people love to level at celebrities is that they “signed up to this” and therefore have no right to complain about the attention they receive by dint of their fame. I’ve never subscribed to this idea, nor would I. It’s dehumanising and predicated on the assumption that famous people have wilfully waived away their rights to privacy and deserve whatever infringements may come their way. Surely we can all have a bit more compassion than that.
‘Yes, Lipa is a very famous woman. But she’s also still as entitled as the rest of us to not have her photograph taken, particularly because photos of her will be shared around the world’ (Alamy/PA)
There are so many reasons why Lipa might not have wanted to have her photo taken in that moment. For all we know, she could have just argued with a friend or received terrible news about a family member. She might’ve been dealing with personal issues relating to her health and wellbeing, or any other number of things that we go through. She might just have wanted a quiet night out with her fiancé. Yes, Lipa is a very famous woman. But she’s also still as entitled as the rest of us to not be harassed for photographs that will then go around the world.
Also, it’s not as if this is a celebrity who gives nothing to her fans. Lipa is consistently seen signing autographs and engaging with the crowds of people who are often found waiting outside wherever she is. There are videos on social media showing her doing just that on the very same day as the paparazzi incident. Couldn’t everyone just leave her alone for a moment?
Of course, they couldn’t. Because famous women have been treated this way for decades. It’s part of the playbook: enter the public eye and get ready to have your existence analysed and eviscerated daily. Sure, famous men receive attention too. But not to the same degree: has a male celebrity ever been subjected to the kind of harassment we’ve seen suffered by so many famous women, one that can result in tragedy? Some of these women are still here – Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, Meghan Markle – but many of them, tragically, are not: Amy Winehouse. Caroline Flack. And, of course, Princess Diana. Have we really learned nothing from these deaths?
I can only hope that the more we push back on incidents such as this, by speaking up when we see them, and by holding paparazzi culture to account, the more respect will be given to famous women like Lipa. After all, as one of the most in-demand stars on the planet, she is more than entitled to a peaceful dinner out with her boyfriend. And there are only so many photos of one person the world needs to see.