Entertainment
Love Island star Laura Anderson cries as she recalls ‘losing jobs’ during Dubai travel backlash
Laura Anderson was overwhelmed with emotion while detailing how she lost money after receiving backlash for travelling to Dubai earlier this year.
The Love Island star was among a heap of celebrities who were heavily criticised for jetting off to warmer countries such as Dubai and the Maldives as the UK was plunged into a third lockdown to combat coronavirus.
At the time, Laura defended herself being in the United Arab Emirates by explaining that she was there for work.
However, many social media users condemned Laura and other influencers for posting beach photos while claiming to be on business trips.
Revealing how the backlash impacted her, Laura said on the Talking Success with Nicki Chapman podcast: ‘That whole situation is probably the hardest thing I’ve ever had to deal with.
‘Obviously everyone gets bad press and I’ve just never had it that bad before and it was just so difficult to explain or stick up for myself because I understand the whole pandemic, I am not some silly little girl. It is really hard and it still goes on now.
‘It’s made me think what I really want to do in the future, in this industry.’
Laura, 31, broke down in tears while recalling how she relies heavily on social media content to earn money.
‘Some people don’t really understand Instagram but you have to constantly be engaging or your insights will go down and I can lose money and jobs. I’ll be honest, it’s a big part of my income,’ she said.
‘That’s just the way it is for me just now. I sort of have to please strangers to make an income… It was a really hard decision to go over.’
‘I’ve lost followers, I’ve lost jobs,’ she added.
Laura clarified that she travelled to Dubai when the UK approved an air bridge between the two countries, meaning people could fly between without needing to quarantine.
She later explained that she didn’t want to stay in the UK as most of her family are in Dubai.
‘I just thought, I need that emotional support. I don’t think I can be in the house on my own again,’ she said.
Laura now plans on flying back to Dubai when permitted and hopes to launch businesses there.
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