Covidiots and Covangels of 2020 – from party girl Rita Ora to charity fundraiser Amanda Holden
IT’S been a year like no other – and we’ve all had to make sacrifices as we adapted to living with Covid-19.
But while most people have been complying with the restrictions put in place to halt the spread of coronavirus, some famous faces just couldn’t resist breaking the rules.
From Rita Ora to Gordon Ramsay, some celebs flouted the rules this year, and faced a huge backlash as a result.
But for every pop star or TV presenter caught flouting restrictions, others have gone above and beyond to stick to the rules and even threw themselves into relief efforts.
As the year draws to a close, we list some of the celebrity Covangels and the stars who have had to bow their heads in shame as Covidiots.
COVIDIOTS
Rita Ora – Party for 30
Singer Rita found herself in hot water when it emerged that she had hosted a birthday party for 30 guests in November.
With the country suffering a second lockdown, the Masked Singer star celebrated her 30th at Casa Cruz in London with celeb pals including Cara and Poppy Delevigne.
She was forced to apologise after pictures of the bash emerged, admitting she made a “serious and inexcusable error of judgement.”
The breach came after the How We Do singer flew to Egypt for a concert.
She was required to self-isolate for 14 days on her return to the UK but she flouted this to attend the party. She has since apologised and voluntarily paid the £10,000 fine.
Kay Burley – Birthday bash
Sky News anchor Kay put bosses in a tight spot when she was found to be in breach of Covid rules after celebrating her birthday with 10 other people in a restaurant.
The party guests were said to be split across two tables.
She then used the toilet in another restaurant and moved on to a private residence where individuals from at least three households mixed.
Under London’s then Tier Two restrictions, people were not allowed to socialise with anyone outside their household or their support bubble inside.
Kay was suspended from TV for six months.
The presenter, who has been with Sky for 32 years, issued an apology and said she looks forward to being able to continue her career when she returns.
Piers Morgan – Mask breach
Good Morning Britain host Piers Morgan has been a fierce critic of people who breach coronavirus rules.
But he was caught doing just that when he travelled in the back of a taxi without a face mask.
After a date night with his wife Celia Walden, the 55-year-old presenter was snapped without the face covering.
Piers later tried to explain his actions on Good Morning Britain, saying it was a momentary lapse, but admitted: “I had designated myself a Covidiot”.
AJ Prichard – House party
Dancer AJ Pritchard, 26, appeared to break the lockdown restrictions when he attended a gathering with his girlfriend Abbie Quinnen after a night out.
They met up with his cousin and friends at a flat at Jako London, High Street Kensington.
The gathering was in breach of London’s tier two restriction which ban people from mixing indoors with others who are not from their household.
Ahead of his appearance as a contestant on this year’s I’m A Celebrity, the former Strictly Come Dancing professional tested positive for coronavirus.
Kylie Jenner – Pal visit
Reality TV star Kylie Jenner broke restrictions when she visited her friend Anastasia Karanikolaou at her home.
At that time, the state of California had issued a shelter-in-place order – meaning no one should leave their homes unnecessarily – because of the rising number of cases in the state.
The make-up mogul was pictured on her way to her pal’s house and confirmed she had indeed flouted the rules when she posted pictures of the pair on her social media.
To add insult to injury, she had previously asked her followers to stay at home and observe coronavirus protocols.
Madonna – Hugs at bash
The Queen of Pop flew from the UK to New York to attend photographer Steven Klein’s birthday bash, which was live-streamed in May.
She was seen hugging Klein, ignoring social distancing orders.
Days earlier, Madonna had revealed on social media that she had tested positive for coronavirus antibodies, meaning she had already had Covid-19.
Gordon Ramsay – Marine ceremony
Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay joined the long list of celebs to break Covid rules when he flew in from America to the UK to attend son Jack’s induction into the Marines in October.
Under current laws, a person is required to self-isolate for 14 days on return from countries with a high infection rate.
His disregard for the rules was discovered after pictures showing him at the ceremony surfaced.
In May, it was reported that he had upset his neighbours by breaking the rules of lockdown.
He was said to be “out all the time” despite stay-at-home orders from the government.
COVANGELS
Amanda Holden – Charity single
Amanda is one of the celebrities known to be observing coronavirus orders as well as raising money for the NHS.
She released a cover of Judy Garland’s Over the Rainbow in May, with all proceeds going to charity.
The song hit number one on the iTunes chart.
She urged people to buy the single saying: “If everyone could keep downloading it – it’s 99p – just think of that as your donation to the NHS, to secure its future.”
Marcus Radford – Child poverty hero
Marcus went from footballer to national hero when he launched a bid to help under-privileged kids who were going hungry in lockdown.
At the beginning of lockdown he teamed up with food charity FareShare to distribute free meals and launched a charity appeal to help more children.
By July, the meals had reached four million children across the UK and, after an open letter from the Manchester United star, the government agreed to extend the free school meals scheme to cover the school holidays.
Marcus was awarded an MBE in June, and has now set up a Child Poverty Task Force, in collaboration with food shops, manufacturers and delivery companies.
Lorraine Kelly – Swearing shock
Earlier this month, the ITV daytime host hilariously rebuked celebrities who had been in breach of coronavirus rules.
The demure presenter shocked the nation when she shared her frustrations about the Covidiot celebrities, in an appearance on The Last Leg.
She said: “To all of us that sacrificed so much this year – I wish you a very merry Christmas and prosperous 2021.
“Unless of course you are a celebrity who broke the rules of lockdown – in that case you can go f*** yourself.”
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle – Fundraising
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been making sure to observe coronavirus rules when out in public.
The royal couple have been spotted in masks on several occasions and have conducted interviews online to comply with stay-at-home orders.
They have also contributed to relief efforts.
In April, they contributed over £74,000 to help feed people impacted by the virus.
Ian McKellen – Jab example
Actor Sir Ian was among the first over 80s to receive the coronavirus vaccine.
The Lord of the Rings star was pictured receiving a shot at Queen Mary’s University hospital in London.
After his shot, he said he felt “euphoric” and tweeted: “Who wouldn’t want immunity from Covid-19 with a painless jab??”.
The 81-year-old was praised for doing his bit to dispel rumours that the vaccine could cause long term issues.
Beyoncè – £4.9m donation
The singer made headlines when she partnered with Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey to donate £4.9million ($6million) to the coronavirus relief effort.
The money was raised to benefit frontline workers who have put their lives on the line to fight the pandemic.
Beyoncè has been known to donate to relief efforts such as the Haiti earthquake in 2010.
She also founded the Survivor Foundation with Destiny’s Child bandmate Kelly Rowland to benefit survivors of Hurricane Katrina.
