Holly: My Momo terror
Host reveals her fear over online ghoul
TELLY presenter Holly Willoughby has waded into the Momo debate – saying she “fears for her son” over the terrifying viral suicide craze.
Holly spoke out after a seven-year-old girl was left so horrified from being exposed to Momo hacker clips online that she banged her head on a school wall.
Callie Astill’s mum Victoria Turner claims her daughter is the latest youngster who is being put at risk.
She refused to go to the toilet alone and suffers from nightmares.
This Morning host Holly is the most high-profile celebrity to comment after concerns her nine-year-old lad Harry could fall victim to the sick challenge.
This has seen hackers change online videos to include the scary-looking character urging youngsters to self-harm.
Holly said: “My son Harry is nine and he goes on YouTube... do I draw his attention to it? I’m a mum,
I don’t know what to do.”
Holly, 38, also has sevenyear-old daughter Belle and son Chester, four. Hackers are using the Momo character to urge children to add a contact on WhatsApp while watching kids’ TV clips such as Peppa Pig.
It then hounds them with sick dares. The character urges kids to self-harm before telling them to take their own lives.
So far a 12-year-old girl and a 16-year-old boy in Colombia are thought to have killed themselves in the challenge.
Callie’s mum Victoria blasted the “disgusting” video creators.
She said: “I asked my daughters whether they’d heard of Momo and Callie blew her top and started screaming. She had her fingers in her ears, burst into tears and it took a long time to console her.”
Meanwhile, Tory MP Andrea Leadsom claimed there is “no confirmed evidence” the Momo challenge is a threat.
The Commons Leader pointed to children’s charities saying reports of the ghoulish figure being linked to messages urging self-harm and suicide is a hoax.
YouTube has said it will suspend comments on videos featuring children which “could be at risk of attracting predatory behaviour”.