TV presenter Steph McGovern reveals she was once told by the head of BBC Breakfast to ‘tone down her clothing choices’ after wearing a ‘lairy’ red dress to work
- Steph, 37, from Middlesbrough, revealed she was asked to ‘tone down’ clothes
- Advised by former head of BBC Breakfast, Alison Ford, who passed away in 2013
- Says her ‘lairy outfit and her accent’ could have made her ‘hard to take seriously’
TV presenter Steph McGovern has revealed she was once told by the head of BBC Breakfast to change her ‘lairy outfit’.
Steph, 37, from Middlesbrough, said after turning up to work in a bright red dress and heels, she was asked to ‘tone down’ her clothing choices by the former head of BBC Breakfast, Alison Ford, who died from breast cancer in 2013.
She admitted to The Telegraph’s Stella Magazine that her ‘lairy outfit combined with her accent’ may have meant it was ‘hard to take her seriously’.
The host, who is openly gay, also said that she feels more judged on her regional accent than her sexuality, insisting that she has found people ‘warm and welcoming’ when it comes to her sexual orientation.
Steph McGovern (pictured), 37, from Middlesbrough, revealed that she was asked to ‘tone down’ her clothing choices by the former head of BBC Breakfast after turning up in a red dress and heels to work (She is pictured at the Virgin TV British Academy Television Awards in 2018)
She said her ‘lairy outfit combined with her accent’ may have meant it was ‘hard to take her seriously’
She said: ‘I turned up in a bright Topshop dress with big New Look heels, and was taken to one side by Alison and asked just to take it down a notch or two.
‘I guess a lairy outfit combined with my accent would have meant I’d have been hard to take seriously.’
When quizzed on whether her sexuality has ever been an issue, she said that she felt ‘more defined’ by her accent than her sexuality, adding most people were ‘warm and accepting.’
It isn’t the first time the presenter has opened up about judgment around her accent, and last year, Steph hit back at a viewer who emailed her to tell her she was saying ‘here’ wrong.
It’s not the first time the presenter has opened up about her accent and has previously revealed she has received hate mail over her ‘mangling’ the English language
She received an email from viewer ‘Trevor’ saying she was ‘mangling’ the English language, by pronouncing the word ‘here’ as two syllables.
The upset viewer said the business reporter does a ‘very good job’ and assured her that her accent ‘doesn’t bother me apart from one word’.
He criticised her for pronouncing ‘here’ as two syllables – ‘he-yah’ – instead of one.
But Steph hit back by posting a screenshot of his complaint on Twitter – and telling him to ‘one syllable off’.
She said: ‘This email has really made me laugh. Two thoughts: Can anyone say the word ‘here’ with one syllable? Try it. I’m curious.
The TV presenter is currently filming The Steph Show for Channel 4 from her home in Leeds, where she’ll offer ‘much-needed joy’ into viewer’s days
‘Despite what Trev thinks, how I say the word ‘here’ IS all about my accent so he can one syllable off.’
It comes after the presenter’s new daily Channel 4 programme, The Steph Show, was brought forward after producers decided to offer some ‘much-needed joy to your day and help you navigate your way through the madness’.
Last week, Steph showed off the set-up for the show, which will be filmed on ‘robotic cameras’ and without a film crew in a bid to stick to social distancing measures.
The programme will see her feature positive stories and people ‘to help get us through these strange times’.