TV personality Dr. Christian Jessen is at the centre of a defamation lawsuit taken by DUP leader Arlene Foster.
Mrs Foster says the doctor’s tweets in 2019 were categorically false, had “trashed” her marriage to her husband of 25 years, and made her feel humiliated.
The Northern Ireland First Minister told the High Court in Belfast yesterday that the rumours and allegations prompted by the doctor’s tweets to his 300,000 followers “cut to the very core” of her life.
Dr. Jessen, who is best known for presenting Channel 4’s “Supersize v Superskinny” and “Embarrassing Bodies”, did not offer a defense against the defamation proceedings which revolve around false allegations that a police officer assigned to protect the DUP leader had an affair with her.
The rumours, Foster told the court, led to an “upsetting” conversation with her husband.
“It was very humiliating to see that the relationship that’s most important to me had been trashed if you like and put out there in the public domain in that fashion,” she said.
“One of the things that gives me stability is my home relationship – it was almost as if this cut to the very core of my life.”
The court was told the initial online allegation made on 23 December 2019 was retweeted by over 500 accounts, with further “aggravating” tweets being posted by the English doctor.
The medic tweeted “LOL (laugh out loud)” on Christmas Day after he was served with notice of the proceedings, telling followers the next day that “”People are now comparing me to Barbra Streisand – this gay boy’s life cannot get any better!!!!.”
“That’s a sneering tweet, with sneering content, and it’s presentation is also a high-level sneer at the way my client (Mrs Foster) is approaching this either personally or through her solicitor,” David Ringland QC told the court.
A statement sent by Foster’s legal team to the doctor was also read out in court:
“Furthermore, your facetious reference to the actor Barbra Streisand intended to smugly highlight, albeit misconceived, references to an alleged Streisand effect of our client’s public statement, together with your positive acknowledgment and encouragement of retweets has further exacerbated the damage caused to our client’s reputation by portraying her as a liar and hypocrite in her said denials.
“For the record, our client would again categorically and emphatically deny that she has had an affair with her driver and that her marriage is a sham.”
Telling the court that she didn’t “have much sleep” after being informed about the tweets on 23 December, Foster said it was a most “hurtful issue”.
“The allegation that I was having an adulterous relationship with one of my police officers clearly was the most hurtful issue,” she explained.
“I have been married to my husband now for 25 and a half years, before we got married we were going out in inverted commas for nine years. It’s a long relationship.
“As a woman in politics and as a leader we come under a lot of stress and strain, but one of the things that gives me stability in my life is my home relationships.
“I think unfortunately in politics if you take a nuanced position on one issue (same-sex marriage) it becomes a much wider piece and that’s unfortunately the case if you cannot explain it in 140 characters in today’s society then it must be true,” she said, reffering to accusations of homophobia.
Judgement was reserved at a hearing to decide the level of damages Foster will be awarded.