Nicola Coughlan is everyone’s favourite star and for good reason – she has us keeling over with laughter in Derry Girls, warms our hearts in Bridgerton and has also created one downright hilarious podcast.

While we eagerly anticipate her return to our screens in Bridgerton (March is within touching distance now, people), the actor has shared a very important message regarding her appearance and the slew of unwarranted comments she receives about her body.

Taking to Twitter and Instagram, Coughlan shared a picture of herself alongside a caption that reads: “If you have an opinion about my body please, please don’t share it with me.”

She adds: “Most people are being nice and not trying to be offensive but I am just one real life human being and it’s really hard to take the weight of thousands of opinions on how you look being sent directly to you every day.

“If you have an opinion about me that’s OK, I understand I’m on TV and that people will have things to think and say but I beg you not to send it to me directly.”

The 35-year-old actor concluded her post with: “Anyways here’s a pic of me in my hotel in NY about to go to SNL, it’s unrelated to this post but delighted with my hair in it.” 

While it’s upsetting to think of anyone receiving an onslaught of messages regarding their appearance, it seems like it’s increasingly becoming the norm for women in the spotlight.

Just recently, Alicia Silverstone posted a pretty iconic TikTok in response to being body-shamed while Tess Holliday also had the best response to a woman who tried to body-shame her at the doctors.

Call The Midwife’s Helen George has also recently spoken out about critical comments around her pregnancy. She took to Twitter yesterday to call the comments “ridiculous”. 

She went on to say: “Women get pregnant, our bodies change. But we have the right to work if we choose to do so. How about just supporting it, and don’t question it?” 

Although it’s infuriating that Coughlan and George have had to address this toxic social media habit within the space of hours of one another, it’s clear that their fans are behind them all the way.

With many congratulating George on her stellar efforts within Call The Midwife – while being pregnant – Coughlan’s fans were also similarly quick to applaud the Bridgerton actor.  

One Twitter user wrote: “You are pretty, your body is beautiful and these terribly insensitive (and stupid) people have to keep their mouths shut” while another admitted that “this is the reason I hate Twitter.”

Here’s to hoping that both Coughlan and George can continue to delight us as actors and multi-faceted women in peace and without the online scrutiny of their appearances.

Image: Getty