‘I was asked to lose weight'
Roxanne Pallett slams ‘lazy’ costume seamstress that demanded she loses weight for new role instead of altering the seam
'The costume needs to fit me - not I need to fit the costume,' Roxanne responded
ACTRESS Roxanne Pallett has opened up about the horrifying moment a “lazy” seamstress told her to lose weight during a costume fitting for a new role – rather than just alter the costume to fit her.
The former Emmerdale star, 33, discussed the incident during an appearance on Lorraine and sparked a body shaming debate.
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Discussing the incident, Lorraine asked: “I wanted to ask you about this because it’s really odd.
“A wee while ago you were trying on some costumes for another production and someone said to you: 'It’d be really great if you could fit into them so can you lose some weight?'”
Roxanne, who was appearing on the show alongside Ray Quinn, confirmed the incident was true and discussed the specific details.
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Roxanne said: “I wasn’t asked to lose weight for a role – I was asked to lose weight by a costume seamstress that couldn’t be bothered to alter the costume.
“And I didn’t do it, Lorraine!
“I went and got a coffee and a bagel instead and thought, the costume needs to fit me - not I need to fit the costume.”
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Involving Ray, who is set to star in a new production of The Wedding Singer with Roxanne, Lorraine asked if he feels male actors get it easier in the industry.
Ray responded: “I don’t know! It’s in our contract that we can’t change our image.
“In some dances colleges and productions girls and boys are weighed.”
Roxanne added: “I think there’s a difference between adapting your image for the role and just doing it for the laziness of someone not wanting to let the seams out.”
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Roxanne, who is currently a healthy size 8 and petite 5ft 2in, first revealed the incident to The Sun on Sunday last year.
She said: “This woman measured me but when it came to putting on the costume she couldn’t zip it up.
“It fitted the previous actress and she hoped it would fit me but it didn’t. The last actress was obviously a different shape. I’m petite but curvy and I’ve got hips, boobs, thighs and a bum.
“She leaned forward and said, ‘What have you eaten today?’ She implied that I’d eaten too much and it was my fault the dress didn’t fit. It was so humiliating.
“She then said, ‘If you diet from now until opening night, this dress will fit and I won’t have to let it out’. She basically wanted me to lose an inch off my body in a couple of weeks to make her job as a costume mistress easier.
“I was furious. Years ago I perhaps would have kept quiet in embarrassment but I was older and stronger and told her that my diet was irrelevant and her job was to make the costume fit and not pressure me to change my body to fit the costume.
“I also complained to her boss. If she said that to someone else, the next girl may have taken the comment to heart. And that’s where insecurities are planted and eating disorders develop.”
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