TV personality and singer Frankie Bridge has spoken out against “double standards” for women after facing online criticism over a holiday with her friend Fleur East. The Saturdays star, 36, who is married to former footballer Wayne Bridge, shared a statement on Instagram addressing comments that labelled her “the worst wife and mother”.
Bridge explained that her husband and mother encouraged her to take the break after she “suffering with various illnesses that became harder to ignore, they took their toll and my mental health plummeted”. She said she reluctantly went on holiday, fitting it in “at a time that would cause minimal damage to the boys’ schedule”.
The singer noted that online commenters find her family set-up “strange” because her husband does “most of the childcare” while she works. She also criticised the “double standards” she has faced throughout her career, saying: “I feel I was very naive to the double standards set upon women… The double standards were right there staring me in the face.”
Bridge, who has two sons with her husband, said attacks did not bother her until she had children. She wrote: “I fundamentally know what is good for my family and I. I have learned with age that I am more than just my looks… I can have depression and still be happy.”
The singer also called out social expectations on women’s weight, appearance, and lifestyle choices, adding: “No wonder so many people are outraged with whatever we do. No one knows what they’re supposed to be angry at next!”
