This Morning presenter Ben Shephard has ignited a fierce social media backlash following what many viewers have deemed an "insensitive" line of questioning directed at a teenage shark attack survivor. The incident occurred during a live interview with Lulu Gribbin, a fifteen-year-old from Alabama who lost an arm and a leg in a horrific bull shark attack while on a family holiday in Florida during 2024.
Graphic Account of the Attack
Lulu, appearing on the ITV programme via video link alongside her twin sister Ellie, provided a harrowing and detailed account of the traumatic event. She described being waist-deep in the water on a Florida beach when her best friend screamed "shark". Lulu recounted the chilling moment she looked down to see her hand had been bitten off, leaving only flesh and bone, a sight she witnessed in a state of profound shock. The attack resulted in her losing two-thirds of her blood into the surrounding sea.
Her life was saved by a heroic bystander who, she explained, "punched the shark off of my leg with his bare hands" and struck its eyes to prevent further mauling. Following the attack, Lulu endured a gruelling seventy-seven-day hospital stay, undergoing multiple surgeries and rehabilitation, which included being fitted with two prosthetic limbs.
The Question That Caused Outrage
The controversy erupted when the conversation turned to Lulu's remarkable recovery and her newfound passion for golf, which she has taken up during her rehabilitation. Expressing her dreams of becoming a professional athlete and potentially competing in the Paralympics, Lulu told hosts Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley, "I play lots of golf... it's been something I can turn to and it's adaptable."
In response, Ben Shephard, aged fifty-one, asked, "Wow, have you got a handicap?" While in golfing terminology a 'handicap' is a standard numerical measure of a player's ability used to facilitate fair competition, the word's common association with disability sparked immediate fury among a significant portion of the audience.
Viewer Reaction on Social Media
Viewers swiftly took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to express their anger and disbelief at the presenter's phrasing. One user wrote, "Ben. What a question to ask someone who survived a shark attack and lost limbs." Another commented, "Have you got a handicap? To a girl with no leg and one arm...", while a third stated bluntly, "The only thing is Ben Shephard's insensitive idiotic questions."
Further criticism included posts such as, "Have you got a handicap? Has he not been paying attention?" and "Ben: Have you got a handicap? She's got no leg, mate." Many labelled the question as "clumsy" and ill-considered given the context of the interview.
A Nuanced Response
However, the reaction was not universally condemnatory. Some viewers defended Shephard, noting that Lulu herself handled the question gracefully, understanding its intent within the sporting context. One supporter wrote, "She took it the way it was intended, he didn't mean anything by it." Lulu responded to the question by calmly stating she did not yet have a golf handicap but was working on it, before reiterating her Paralympic ambitions.
Dozens of other viewers used the platform to praise Lulu's extraordinarily positive and determined attitude in the face of her ordeal. Comments flooded in describing her as "so admirable", "lovely and so polite", and noting that she "hasn't let this hold her back." One impressed viewer added, "Impressive she can still play, she's probably a better golfer than me."
Campaigning for Change
Beyond her personal recovery, Lulu and her sister Ellie are now channeling their experience into advocacy. They are campaigning for "Lulu's Law", a proposed piece of legislation in the United States. The law would establish an alert system, similar to the existing Amber Alert for child abductions, which would send text messages to beachgoers' phones warning them of confirmed shark sightings in the vicinity.
Reflecting on her journey, Lulu emphasised her focus on gratitude and determination during recovery, stating, "I was grateful for what I still had... I focused my recovery on the little things." Her story remains one of profound resilience, though the interview has now become overshadowed by a debate about language, sensitivity, and the responsibilities of broadcasters when discussing disability and trauma.
