Another day, another famous woman getting her face dissected by strangers on the internet. The woman in question, Tulisa Contostavlos, had a particularly difficult time. Tulisa first found fame as part of nineties London hip hop trio N-Dubz when she was in her late teens. In 2011, at the age of 23, he became a household name when he joined the judging panel at The X Factor. The following year, she was the victim of revenge porn when her ex-boyfriend, Justin Edwards, released a sex tape that ultimately derailed the trajectory of her career.

Now she is one of ten celebrities who live in the infamous I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here jungle. Already dubbed as a “fan favorite”, most people were excited to see the self-titled “female boss” on their screens. Others, unfortunately, started trolling her looks. And according to Google Trends, “Tulisa gets a facelift,” “Tulisa botox,” and even “what did Tulisa do to her face?” they are all trending now.

Apart from a few appearances on free women, and N Dubz’s 2022 reunion, Tulisa has largely stayed out of the limelight in the years since. Seeing this reaction, it’s not exactly hard to see why.

He had a difficult time with fame. Speaking on Olivia Attwood’s podcast in October, Tulisa said she felt like a “virtual rape” when her sex tape aired in 2012. The singer went on to say she felt “judged, disgusted and ashamed” at the time. Not only that, but revenge porn wasn’t illegal yet, so Tulisa only got “an apology” from her ex.

“It took me years. I didn’t even know how long I was going to have to process it,” she told the podcast host. “It’s affected my relationships to this day and my intimacy and all those types of things — it’s life-changing in a big, big way.”

In 2013, Tulisa was also the victim of a “tabloid sting”, in which she was targeted by Mazher Mahmood, an undercover journalist, posing as an influential film producer who wanted her to star in a Hollywood blockbusters. Mahmood met the singer at a London hotel, where she allegedly arranged for one of her contacts to sell him half an ounce of cocaine.

She was later arrested and charged with being concerned in the supply of a Class A drug after Mahmood handed over evidence to police. However, the lawsuit was ultimately dismissed after Mahmood’s driver changed his statement to remove comments the singer had made about her disapproval of hard drugs. Mahood was later found guilty of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. As for Tulisa, she has spoken candidly about feeling suicidal following the whole ordeal and the damage the case has caused to her reputation. She told Sky News: “I had no fight left in me. I don’t know who that person was, but he was in a very dark place.

three years later, Tulisa directed the BBC Three documentary Tulisa: The Price of Fame, where she presented her experience of being treated like a tabloid and the long-term consequences of fame.

In her conversation with Olivia Attwood in October, she also opened up about being officially diagnosed with Bell’s Palsy in 2020 – a condition she’s had for 12 years. According to the NHS, Bell’s palsy is a temporary weakness or lack of movement that usually affects one side of the face. “When I was about 24, I had my first attack of Bell’s palsy, so I went down to a certain extent, I was left with a little swelling and then my whole face fell off.” She later added: “My face stayed like this for seven months. I didn’t go out, I just hid.

This is the person who, against all odds, found the strength to go on one of the UK’s biggest entertainment shows – the launch alone had 7.7 million viewers. It’s likely Tulisa is hoping her stint on the show will help her reclaim her narrative.

How terrible, then, to see people immediately pick up on her appearance – especially those who do so in relation to Bell’s palsy. Luckily, everyone’s favorite ally Rylan Clark was quick to jump to her defense after the film’s opening episode. I’m a celebrity. He took to X to say: “Also, before people start making appearances, Tulisa has been through a lot health wise the last few years so let’s not make jokes about her on twitter yeah x “. Well said Rylan.

As someone in the public eye, Tulisa is neither the first nor the last person to undergo cosmetic “adjustments” to meet the ever-changing standard of beauty. Nor has he ever denied doing anything. In fact, before heading into the jungle, the singer posted about having lip fillers, tattooed lipstick and permanently filled eyebrows. Any changes people may have noticed in her appearance are no secret, nor are they an excuse to make fun of her online.

With a shopping list of cosmetic procedures creeping into the mainstream anyway, it’s hard for anyone to escape the pressure to look as “perfect” as possible—even if that means different things to different people. Let alone someone like Tulisa, who has spent the better part of her life being judged by the public.

Too often we see women at the height of their fame being torn apart by tabloids and social media trolls. Fortunately, although it’s not common, we see them rebuild and forge a new path on their own terms. If this is Tulisa’s opportunity to defy the years of torment, ridicule and injustice she’s been subjected to – please let’s not focus on her looks.