Cheryl’s fury over new “skinny shaming”

Trolls slam the singer for “wasting away,” as Cheryl’s sparkler sends the rumour-mill into overdrive

She looked tiny as she made a rare public appearance last week, meeting Prince Charles at an event for The Prince’s Trust, and fans expressed concern for Cheryl, saying she was “gaunt” and “too thin”.

Critics blasted her for “wasting away,” with one posting, “Things can’t be good in her private life, we’ve all seen it before. She’s skin and bone”. There was also speculation that she’d got engaged to boyfriend Liam Payne, 24, after she flashed a diamond ring on her left hand.

However, some trolls even suggested Cheryl was trying to spark the engagement rumours herself in a bid to dispel gossip that all was not well with the couple, following Tweets asking why they had not been pictured together for some time.

One post read, “She knows what she’s doing wearing a ring on that finger… all about the publicity when it suits them.

And she’s looking like she did when she split with her last husband.”

But our source adds, “Cheryl isn’t engaged, she was just wearing jewellery that was designed to be worn across three fingers.”

Insiders say the star – who welcomed son Bear last March – was irritated by the negative reaction, especially to her weight.

The source says, “Of course it was upsetting. It’s always annoying for her when she’s trying to do something positive, like her charity work, and it’s overshadowed by gossip. But she’s determined to rise above it.”

Weight issues are a sensitive subject for Cheryl. In 2015, she uploaded a heartfelt meme on social media about how outraged she was after being “skinny shamed” and called for it to be made illegal.

Recently, Cheryl has been dealing with another backlash as Liam has been ridiculed for posting bare-chested selfies. He even admitted in an interview last week that he wished Cheryl would compliment him more on his topless pics.