Nigella Lawson: bear-botherer!

Posted by Jane Murphy

Pouting posho and self-styled domestic goddess Nigella Lawson has run into a spot of trouble with animal-lovers - by saying she would kill a bear for its skin.

During an appearance on The One Show, Nigella said buying a fur coat would be a "moment of weakness" - but killing the animal herself would be an entirely different matter.

"If I could go out into the woods and kill a bear myself, I would then wear it proudly as a trophy," she told startled presenters Adrian Chiles and Christine 'Twinkletoes' Bleakley.

"You're a nice lady who makes chocolate puddings," spluttered Adrian. "Why would you want to go out killing bears for something to wear?"

Nigella's reply? "If you're in nature and it's either you or the bear goes..." Hmmm... I wonder if she'd been at the cooking sherry before she came on air.

The TV cook's comments have inevitably sparked an outraged response from animal rights activists Peta. "Nigella's comments were callous and lacked any human decency," a spokesman told the Daily Mail.

"If she could see the way bears and other animals are killed in the wild she wouldn't have been so flippant.

"Bears are routinely hunted down by dogs, chased into trees and shot, often inaccurately, while they try to scramble to safety. The animals suffer in agony for some time before they are killed.

"Nigella is serving to endorse this kind of practice. In my view Nigella has blood on her hands." Alright - steady on, mate!

All the same, perhaps Nigella should stick to chocolate puddings in future. What do you think?

Picture: Rex Features

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Comments

[LB]

Goodfor her, anyone who can upset so many self righteous morons is just what society needs more of. God forbid that a species which evolved as omnivores should become so unnatural as to respectfully utilise all parts of a slain animal!

[Amy]

I LOVE a bit of Nigella.. if i was into that kinda thing, id be well into her lol

[Linda]

Nigella getting a bit "flaky" lately.

[Jo]

I can't see the beautifully made- up and coiffed goddess doing anything so taxing as fighting a bear in the woods - so I think the point is mute. Rest easy all you bears......

[:)]

If we are not carefull it will be worse than big brother. Everyone has the right to say or do something.

[N.P.]

Peta. Google them and see how much of animal protectors they are. If I was any animal and saw them coming I would run as fast as I could in the opposite direction!!!

[IDIOTS]

This is becoming the Dave and Annabel show .... lol

[P]

OK Annabel bear necessity! I have a cat too! no offense! xx

[Annabel]

P...

Your comments did make me laugh...honestly!

However, i didn't mention anything about my GGM saving the country (just doing her bit) and she wasn't little and old either, but a young woman.

I still have the coat today that I allow my cats to use as a bed..so they are taking advantage of animal cruelty too...

[lol again]

lol what a load of crap - again!

If I was in the woods - no food - no warmth - it wouldn't just be bears that I'd have a good try at fighting for their meat & fur......watch out beavers!!!!

Do-Gooders......lol lol lol

Anyone would think the human being came from space with ready made clothes and microwave meals........lol

IT'S REAL NATURE WHERE WE ALL CAME FROM GET OVER IT

[P]

OH MY GOD now the war is coming out (of course) and an old lady save the country, Jesus and i though it was a bear issue! and yes cave people were hunting bear wear next to nothing and eat raw meat or whatever was available now days we go to supermarket.

Oh dear, what madness descends. I'm not too sure whether to laugh or cry! Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, it's good to have one, but is it really worth tearing chunks out of each other by getting personal about something someone else said?! Blimey, I'd rather be the bear!!

[Lilycat]

Let's not go on a witch hunt ! We have all said things that afterwards you think that you must have been deranged. This is abviously one of those instances. By the way I am a veggie so all you others ....calm down.

[Annabel]

MESSAGE FOR DAVE....

YES, SORRY YOU DID MISS YOUR CHANCE WITH MY GREAT GRANDMOTHER. SHE DIED YEARS AGO, TAKING THE COWARDS WAY OUT OF FIGHTING FOR THIS COUNTRY PROVIDING CARE IN LONDON HOSPITALS WHEN I BOMB WAS DROPPED!!!

D*CK!!!

[Alasdair Hudson]

she is being perfectly honest and I don't see the problem.

Bears have been hunted since caveman times and the hunting of them now is tightly controled so there is no problem.

PETA are just anti everything .

[Charlotte]

Enough!

[P]

ANYWAY NIGELLA WOULDNT GO IN THE TUBE IN LONDON NEVER MIND GOING IN A FOREST! SO BERAS DO NOT FEAR, WHAT A USELESS COMMENT, I SUPPOSE SELLS BOOKS!

[Sarah]

It seems PETA and others have misunderstood Nigellas' point. She simply meant if she lived in the wild and had to kill a bear out of necessity she would do it. You would have to in that situation to survive. I won't wear fur and I give money to the RSPCA, but I can see what she was trying to say and it's been blown out of all proportion. She didn't say she's going out to the woods to kill a bear for fun, did she??

[Michael]

YAAAAAAWN - In reply to KITTY WAKE, check your facts, sweetheart, bears are on the decline. And LEATHER IS A BY-PRODUCT, meaning oh narrow-minded one that a cow isn't bred solely for leather. For bears to be shot for this purpose is abhorrent, cruel and very nasty indeed. Now, you got a cat as I my missus needs some new earmuffs.

[Nigella]

Hi, I'm Nigella and I lost my braincells whilst drinking too much vino that should have gone into the Coq au vin.

[P]

COLOURED? are we in the deep south boy? what colour exactly, colonel Saunders, animals don't speak and colours neither

[rosemary]

well now we can see just how near we are to "Big Brother" .for heavens sake can no one make a joke anymore? theres always someone has to shout about the odd chat ..Why dont thet go off to China and sort animal abuse out there first .get a life

[Jodie]

Nigella wouldn't be able to get a fur big enough to cover that fat-ass of hers yet alone her entire body.

She's a minger.

[James]

What is all the fuss about it was just words its getting so that you dare not speak before someone jumps down your throat In this country you have to be an animal or coloured

[P]

White farmers, baby p, bunny wunnies destroying crops, my god who are the dim wits? OK back to the bear, how is she going to kill it, is she planning an holiday in Canada? does she go on holiday with a kalashnikov if so I'm with the bear, lots of meat to eat there!

[Dave]

". . . don't see the problem, if she has legitamately killed the bear, in a fair fight, why waste the skin? . ."
.
.
.

PMSL!!!

Nigella and a bear in a fair fight. . .

THAT I would LOVE to see!!!
LOL!!!LOL!!!!!

[Dave]

". . .god society has gone mad, just what kind of world are we living in, its pathetic these people its a free country free speech and all thats codswallop when it suits animal rights can say what they want and get away with it. . ."

. . . Errmmm, so free speech doesn't apply to animal rights people?

And what's baby P got to do with it. . . ?

". . . does this make my Great Grandmother a murderer for buying fur. . . "

Yes! A vile murderer!! In fact let's form a baying mob with burning torches and go round to her house!!! She probably took the cowards' way out though and died years ago, robbing us of our chance for JUSTICE!!!!!

[Frank Doberman]

Trophy !
What a bonehead you have turned out to be - get back in the kitchen you stupid woman and take your supporters with you

Yet another comment taken completely out of contex by Peta. WHAT A SHOCKER...

[what is going on ??]

i watched the one show, it seemed like a fair comment to me - if i'm in the wild and it's the bear or me ...well i'm going to die trying. Now i don't know nigella personally, but it sounded to me that her point was this; that if she had been the victor over the bear then she would be proud to wear his coat, and she also wouldn't freeze that winter......but on a sad note the way the animals are killed abroad for fur is wrong - so whats the simple answer ... legalise it, make it humane and STOP WHINNING on!

[Bob Pem]

Oh god, here we go again. It sometimes seams that there is an army of people out there whose sole purpose in life is to be disgusted and offended at everything someone else says. Apart from the obvious fact that Nigel is not about to go out and kill anything, what difference if she did?
Next thing you know the simple dimwit animal lovers will stop us killing all those cute little bunny wunnies that eat all the crops.
For gods sake, get a life and if you must worry about something, worry about all the white farmers being killed or driven off their lands in South Africa.
Now that is worth the controversy.

[suzy]

god society has gone mad, just what kind of world are we living in, its pathetic these people its a free country free speech and all thats codswallop when it suits animal rights can say what they want and get away with it, and yes im not cruel to any animals i wont even kill a fly or spider but am afraid if its me or a bear fraid it would be the bear to die he wouldnt stand there and look at me and say i mustnt kill this person its so cruel erm get a life how many bears are you going to see in this country or of course you probably fly to save the animals never mind the effect flying has on us all, pity you couldnt use all this spare air to save people like baby p he didnt fight back either or anybody to speak up for him he probably thought 'please dont kill me i didnt ask for all this' but where were you do gooders then.it was a comment im sure she didnt stop going out today to kill a bear, 'JUST SAD PEOPLE'.

[Kitty Wake]

Yaaaaaaawn.
Fur is warm and bears aren't endangered. Loads of people wear leather, why is it that fur (which is only leather with the hair still on) gets everyone so riled? I appreciate that killing endangered animals for their coat or any other partanything is wrong, but otherwise, don't see the problem.

[Sarah]

I see the 'disgusted brigade' are out in force again. Seems you cant say or do anything in this country anymore without it causing national outrage. These people need to get some sort of life and get over it or their heads will eventually explode.

[John Walters]

What's the betting that she has a book coming out shortly - oh - she has - what a surprise!

I would love to see Nigella is JUST a bear skin coat - or even better - then without it...

I think a little perspective is needed here. Yet again a passing celeb comment blown totally out of proportion and probably taken out of context, due to their status. It may be a bit of a back track, but read her second comment, how many people can say that faced with a bear they would rather sacrifice their own life if it came to it?! Very generous of you I'd say!

[Annabel]

Leave her alone!! I also watched the show and her point has been entirely taken out of sink. As usual it's just another thing for people to whinge about. For the record to those ignorant fur protesters, can I ask you, do you wear leather, suede, eat meat? I have no problem with people killing an animal providing all parts of the animal are used. Also, does this make my Great Grandmother a murderer for buying fur when synthetic materials were not available then to keep warm??? I think not!!

[colin]

here we go again!! if the papers reported the context she said it in, then maybe we wouldnt be in this situation yet again, her remark was that if in that situation it was between her and the bear then she would be fine with using the skin after, not that she purposely wanted to go out to shoot a bear SO that she could wear the fur, i say this as an aminal lover and a monthly donator to RSPCA.

[Farmboy]

don't see the problem, if she has legitamately kiilled the bear,in a fair fight, why waste the skin? One less bear s******* in the woods. Mind you, she'd look much better without it, or anything else...

[shelli]

Oh come on - stop patronising us with this type of rubbish - people cant even make a comment any more without a load of nanny statist, anti offence, oversensitivity league types jumping up and down shouting to get a bit of publicity. NB Its nothing to do with bears or anti hunting or fur - it's about publicity.

I can fairly accurately predict the other comments that this silly article will attract "she should stick to cooking" "if she kenw how animals suffer she would never have said that" "someone should do that to her see how she likes it" - Oh look below, what a surprise! All we need now is some fascist comment about my comments - and how the tedium of the day is eliminated!

If you are going to have a "chat" show - people are going to "chat" on it. How much of what you say during the course of the day do you later regret ?? - think about it - if you're capable

[p]

JUST COOK AND SHUT UP AND AFTER ALL THAT f___k off

[fur ball]

I THINK YOU PEOPLE NEED TO GET A LIFE !!
PERSONALITIES ON TV MUST SAY THINGS THEN SIT BACK LAUGHING AND WATCH ALL THE SAD LITTLE PEOPLE GO CRAZY
PLEASE REMEMBER THAT IN MOST SITUATIONS WHAT CELEBS DO OR SAY IS NOT WORTH WORRYING ABOUT, PLEASE GET A LIFE

[fur ball]

I THINK YOU PEOPLE NEED TO GET A LIFE !!
PERSONALITIES ON TV MUST SAY THINGS THEN SIT BACK LAUGHING AND WATCH ALL THE SAD LITTLE PEOPLE GO CRAZY
PLEASE REMEMBER THAT IN MOST SITUATIONS WHAT CELEBS DO OR SAY IS NOT WORTH WORRYING ABOUT, PLEASE GET A LIFE

[Emma]

I personally cannot agree with animal cruelty of any kind, including chickens or ducks. I do not eat at KFC for this reason. I would never buy fur, not because of the fact that is IS fur but because of the way the animals are treated and killed to achieve the end result. Natural selection dictates that we humans are at the top of the food chain, however, this doesn't mean we have the right to inflict suffering in the process.

[nick]

she should be boiled in her owen xmas pud

[jane]

Well done Nigella - I say it't about time we stopped pandering to the posh bashing plebs everywhere!

[Snowy]

All you that have posted complaints should take a look at what you are wearing, where do you think leather commes from. Get of her back i watched the show and know where she is comming from.P.S have you ever sleopt in a bed with feather pillows ? you should see how chickens and ducks are killed for their down

[jo]

Whilst everyone, of course, has the absolute right to their own opinion, Nigela is a public figure.By airing a view on such a sensitive subject, she is leaving herself wide open to criticism. I personally find her opinion on animals disgusting, offensive and utterly degrading to sentient beings. And that is my right of opinion.

[Simon Taylor]

Why cant she just dissapear completly. Her comments are dispicable and as for her cooking program - that's a fake. She was exposed for hiring a london bus loaded with extra's to make out she travels by public transport and the guests she has at her dinner parties are people she's never met before.

[Bubbles]

Nigela Lawson, has gone from my ideal person to absolute scum. How she say she would kill a bear herself and wear the pelt for a TROPHY.Get her OFF our tv,s NOW.

[julie]

Yes she should stick to what shes knows about, cooking, although I suspect the comment could possibly have been a bit of a joke and not really meant, the problem was..... she was on TV!