Star bullied for her ginger hair (From The Argus)
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Star bullied for her ginger hair
2:10pm Friday 16th January 2009 in
A Hollywood starlet has revealed how she suffered torment at the hands of school bullies because of her ginger hair.
Brighton-based teenager Dakota Blue Richards attended St Paul's School in Brighton, Blatchington Mill School in Hove and KBis Theatre School in Brighton.
She said fellow students picked on her after she dyed her hair red for her role in box office blockbuster The Golden Compass.
Speaking in the magazine One Year, Ten Stories, which is published by the Equality and Human Rights Commission, Dakota said: "People in school call other people names because of their hair colour, skin colour or their nationality.
"The bullies used to call me names and I found it quite hard because they were trying to hurt somebody else based on the fact that they look slightly different.
"There's so much pressure to be what people call perfect.
"I don't really understand it because if everyone looked the same it would be odd. It takes all of us to make the world.
"Dakota, 14, was plucked from obscurity for the role of Lyra Belaqua in the film based on Philip Pullman's best selling books, The Northern Lights trilogy.
Her parents in the film were played by Nicole Kidman and Bond actor Daniel Craig.
Last summer, Dakota spent two weeks in the Lake District at the Our Space camp which was organised by the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
It aimed to bring together teenagers from different backgrounds to discuss human rights and discrimination.
Anyone suffering from bullying can contact the National Bullying Helpline on 0845 2255787.
Comments(19)
Redbeard
says...
2:43pm Fri 16 Jan 09
jaygee
says...
2:51pm Fri 16 Jan 09
CJN
says...
2:51pm Fri 16 Jan 09
NoWaySeriously
says...
3:02pm Fri 16 Jan 09
still, like everyone else is saying: who's laughing now? the girl who is a hollywood starlet? or the idiots working in Primark?
Jim BB
says...
3:03pm Fri 16 Jan 09
mr punch
says...
3:41pm Fri 16 Jan 09
dollymixture
says...
4:33pm Fri 16 Jan 09
cheezburger
says...
4:43pm Fri 16 Jan 09
Err i dont think so. Whats Hollywood got to do with it? Try again Argus.
Mind you, interesting to see that some report her as a bully.
Dakota Blue branded a "yob" by locals
Saturday, April 12 2008, 09:18 BST
By Alex Fletcher, Entertainment Reporter
Actress Dakota Blue Richards has been described by locals as a "yob" after she helped knock down a snowman and snowdog with a gang of girls in East Sussex.
The 13-year-old star was involved in the destruction of two snow sculptures outside a newsagents in Hove, reports the Daily Telegraph.
Newsagent Abe Restato said: "We put our heart and soul into that snowman. People were coming up and giving us stuff like coal for the eyes. It was a real team effort and an amazing day."
He added: "Now I don't even want her autograph. She went from cool to uncool in a very short space of time."
A spokesperson for the Golden Compass star said: "It was a game that obviously somewhere along the way went awry. It was not done with malicious intent at all."
Local resident John Conrad commented: "It seems kids today can't stop being inconsiderate yobs even if they are film stars."
CARTMAN
says...
4:45pm Fri 16 Jan 09
Why could the film makers not choose someone with natrally red hair?
Prehaps out of priciple she should have refused to dye!
Security word? help-that
cheezburger
says...
4:56pm Fri 16 Jan 09
Osama bin there
says...
5:19pm Fri 16 Jan 09
I'd just say to the bullies 'Loadsa money!' and wave my wad in their faces.
TheInsider
says...
6:31pm Fri 16 Jan 09
Bullies always pick on the most vulnerable and snow people are so vulnerable members because their existence is so brief.
She should be ashamed of herself. No wonder she's Dakota Blue and not Snow White.
Scoomer
says...
8:21pm Fri 16 Jan 09
http://tinyurl.com/7
xy9k3
They ran the story nine months ago and haven't been forced to retract it yet...
NoWaySeriously
says...
8:40pm Fri 16 Jan 09
Scoomer wrote:aahahahaha; well done, the Argus.
TheInsider, according to the Telegraph, the story's true:
http://tinyurl.com/7
xy9k3
They ran the story nine months ago and haven't been forced to retract it yet...
jo w
says...
1:06am Sat 17 Jan 09
couldbeakiller
says...
3:50am Sat 17 Jan 09
jaygee wrote:haven't you heard of the minimum wage?
who is laughing now dakota,certainly not your ex school bullies who are working at macdonalds on £4 an hour.
Bring Back Southern Television Brighthelmstone
says...
9:09am Sat 17 Jan 09
jaygee
says...
10:44am Sat 17 Jan 09
TomSpoonfed
says...
4:57pm Mon 26 Jan 09
You can read an interesting interview with the artist here: http://www.spoonfed.
co.uk/spooners/susie
-680/root-ginger-751
/
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