Madeley has been accused of victim blaming
Richard Madeley has once more landed himself in hot water for comments he made while speaking to a victim of drink spiking, with his co-host Susanna Reid even having to intervene in his questioning.
As concerns grow over drink spiking in bars and nightclubs across the country,
Good Morning Britain spoke to a victim of drink spiking, Jemma Wolstenholme earlier this today (October 21).
https://twitter.com/GMB/status/1451075797666701314
However, Madeley's questions angered many viewers as he appeared to blame Jemma for allowing her drink to be spiked.
He asked his interviewee whether she was "taking precautions" and "keeping an eye" on the drink.
Jemma explained that she didn't realise she had been spiked until the next day, saying: "I was in London at the time and I didn’t know if I got a taxi home or the train, which was immediately a big flag in my mind."
But Madeley seemed unsympathetic, continuing to ask her if she had taken precautions and done everything she could do to avoid being spiked.
Jemma replied: "Yeah, well it’s sort of second nature now because we’ve been told for so long that we need to be careful whose near our drinks. So if I did leave it, it was left with my friend."
She added: "It’s still a bit of a mystery as to how it happened but you see people finding opportunities wherever they can."
https://twitter.com/nowMrsMFL/status/1451074241290506242
Eventually, Susanna Reid had to step in to stop his persistent questioning ("But had you been taking precautions? Had you been trying to protect your drink? Had you kept your hand over it? Did you keep it with you?") telling Jemma that it absolutely was not her fault that she had been spiked.
Many viewers were left unimpressed by Madeley's handling of the interview though.
One tweeted: "That's right Richard, let’s question the girl if she was careful enough!"
Another said that they "can't actually believe this."
https://twitter.com/EvijawithLove/status/1451076638645620739
The rise in concerns over drink spiking comes after reports of female students being 'injected' with drugs in bars and clubs. The first reports of such incident emerged in
Nottingham earlier this week, with students in the city and across the country now organising
a boycott of late night venues set for October 28.
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