Littlejohn Victim’s Suicide

[Update at end of post]

Last December, the Mail’s unfunny and talentless churnalist Richard Littlejohn observed “Twitter is a playground for vicious trolls and cowardly cyber-bullies who can ruin people’s lives with the most vile threats and smears”, the inference being that he and his fellow pundits are people of the purest and noblest motives who would never sink to such levels.

Suicide, Guv? Nuffin' to do with me, innit?!?

What you will no longer see in that column, as it has been hastily removed, is The Great Man’s comments on teacher Lucy Meadows. This is because she has just taken her own life. Ms Meadows had previously been Mr Upton, and had transitioned to live as a woman. There was no public interest whatever in this, save the prurience of our wonderful free press. And the subsequent hate mail.

Hence the papers gleefully reporting this original news: the Mail and the Sun. “Shock at CofE school where Mr Upton will return after Christmas as Miss Meadows” trumpeted the Mail, as if “C of E school” was relevant. Perhaps the Anglican church is supposed to cast such people out into eternal darkness. But they did find one parent who objected.

The Sun was no more highbrow in its coverage: “Sir becomes Miss” was the typically imaginative headline from Rupe’s downmarket troops. At least they talked to a grandparent who was supportive and said it was a very brave thing to do. Sadly, the attempt by local Government staff and councillors to emphasise that this was a personal and private matter went unheeded.

Littlejohn, who as I recently observed takes his prurient interest in transsexual people as far as asking how they take a pee, went on the offensive, this meaning he was even more offensive than usual: “He’s not only in the wrong body, he’s in the wrong job ... The school shouldn’t be allowed to elevate its ‘commitment to diversity and equality’ above its duty of care to its pupils and their parents”.

What you can no longer see online

This was going to endanger children? Whatever. There’s more: “It should be protecting pupils from some of the more, er, challenging realities of adult life, not forcing them down their throats. These are primary school children, for heaven’s sake ... he isn’t entitled to project his personal problems on to impressionable young children”. There was more. Rather too much more.

Well, now Dicky Windbag has his scalp and I hope he and his legendarily foul mouthed editor are happy about it. Lucy Meadows is dead, and those impressionable young children are having to deal with one of their teachers no longer being there, as the actions of another fearless pundit cause them to have another of those challenging realities of adult life forced down their throats.

Meanwhile, Littlejohn continues to trouser a million a year. No change there, then.

[UPDATE 1810 hours: David Allen Green has asked me to include a reference to the Trans Media Watch (TMW) submission to the Leveson Inquiry, which I am more than happy to do (read it HERE [.pdf]). There was concern about the portrayal of Trans people by parts of the media - and you now know why. Note also the TMW strapline "Accuracy - Dignity - Respect". Littlejohn fails on all three counts.

Meanwhile, the Manchester Evening News has reported Lucy Meadows' death, and it is clear that many people are shocked at what has happened. She has been described as "valued" and "well liked", and there have been requests for all concerned to have their privacy respected. Sadly, one has a sense of foreboding, when the Fourth Estate are involved, that this may not be universally honoured]