SHE first stole the nationâs hearts after appearing on The X Factor as a giggly teenager in 2009, before becoming a well-known household name with millions in the bank.
Indeed, Stacey Solomon, 36, appears to have it all â a beautiful family, a sprawling ÂŁ1.2million mansion and a flow of telly work, alongside collabs with Primark and ASDA.
But in recent years, the mum, who shares three kids with partner Joe Swash and has two from previous relationships, has suffered several blows to her career and status, with former fans dubbing her âout of touchâ and âsmugâ.
Just recently, Stacey decided to snub this yearâs Bafta TV Awards after facing a backlash over her emotional reaction to losing at last yearâs ceremony.
Instead of putting on a gown and gracing the red carpet, the presenter is in Miami on a paid Space NK brand trip with her kids, as well as Rochelle Humes and Olivia Attwood who are also soaking up the sun.
The Sort Your Life Out star was criticised online â with some trolls branding her a âsore loserâ and a âspoiled bratâ â after she admitted on Instagram that she was âdevastatedâ her BBC show failed to win.
Although Sort Your Life Out was nominated in two categories, it missed out on a Bafta, prompting Stacey to defend her hardworking team in the emotional video.
She said: âI know Iâm supposed to take it gracefully like a champ, but Iâll be honest, Iâm devastated.
âThe crew also deserve the Bafta after the effort they put into making the show,â she vented from her garden.
However, this isnât the first time the former X Factor hopeful and her family have come under fire. So, are we really witnessing the downfall of the once-beloved star?
Brand expert Georgia OâBrien-Perry believes so. She told The Sun: âShe was funny, self-deprecating, and âimperfectâ in a world full of filler, veneers, facelifts and polished accents, and audiences loved her for it, finally seeing someone more âeverydayâ and like them on their screens.
âThe issue now isnât that sheâs become successful, but that the relatability that built the foundation of her success is no longer the reality, and audiences are noticing a disparity between how she really lives and the humble image she keeps projecting.â
She continued: âThe Bafta situation of last year is a perfect example of this, as Solomonâs reaction to her show âSort Your Life Outâ missing out on an award showed a new side to the star.
âWhile she attempted to frame her reaction as disappointment over how hard her team worked and how much they deserved to win, it instead came across as someone who had come to expect recognition all the time, rather than feel grateful for it.â
According to Georgia, who previously slammed mums for profiting off their kids, Staceyâs problem is that these moments are no longer few and far between â and instead, they âare ramping up in intensityâ.
ÂŁ30k/week holiday during a cost-of-living crisis
The cleanfluencer, who still boasts the title âproud Loose Womanâ on her Instagram bio despite not having appeared on the show for some time now, is no stranger to a lavish holiday. However, taking her brood abroad on expensive trips during a time when millions of households are struggling hasnât gone down well amongst social media users.
Just last August, the Iâm A Celebrity winner was cruelly mum-shamed after posting pics from ÂŁ30k a week Turkey holiday.
The Turkish hotel they usually stay at is the Regnum Carya in Antalya, where rooms start from around ÂŁ1,000 per person per night.
They have been there so many times, Stacey now refers to it as her âsecond homeâ. But while Stacey and her family were all smiles on her Instagram profile, it was a different reaction in the comments where the TV presenter was branded âseriously smugâ and âout of touchâ.
After landing home, Stacey addressed the backlash, insisting that the claims were not true and it wasnât a âfree holiday.â
Taking to her Instagram stories, she wrote: âNow weâre going home Iâve tagged the hotel for all of you asking & Iâll share my little âspend the day with usâ and show you around everywhere.
âThis is the third time Iâve come back here. This wasnât a free holiday. I just love this place so much & think it deserves the BEST reviews & tags ever because itâs just incredible.
âIt is very expensive. I do think it is worth every penny & more for what it has to offer,â said Stacey who also hit the slopes in Switzerland the same year, surprised her entire family with a trip to Jamaica and jetted off to Abu Dhabi for a luxury Easter holiday in 2023,
Flogging âa load of c**pâÂ
They might live in a gorgeous £1.2million Essex home and enjoy sun-soaked getaways, with Stacey alone reportedly earning £57,000 every month, according to Wales Online.
But thatâs clearly not enough for Stacey and Joe who started dating in 2016 â as earlier this year, in March, the 44-year-old EastEnders actor was seen peddling all sorts of stuff online from hair-growth shampoo to kitchen gadgets, in a desperate attempt to rake in cash.
The video had the label: âCommission paidâ on it, showing Joe was earning money from the sales. But it appears that Stacey, who seems to be the main breadwinner of the household, wasnât too impressed with his antics.
As he opened the box, his wife Stacey interjected: âIt looks like a lot of c**pola.â Joe then explained that the product he was promoting was a face mask that blows air on you.
âWhat for?â asked Stacey. âTo help you relax,â grinned Joe.
Stacey shouted: âWhat do you mean it blows on your eyes? What is the point of that?â As Joe showed off the face mask, Stacey repeated: âWhat is the point of it?â
âI feel like this is a good bit of kit, itâs massaging my temples,â said Joe as he revealed it might be a keeper. Stacey said: âYou look like a k**b.â
But Stacey herself has also come under fire by her fans who last year slammed her for the very same thing, insisting her Instagram has turned into âconstant selling for Amazonâ.
On one occasion, Stacey â who earns a commission from every purchase made from her personalised Amazon link â she shared a video of herself wrapping some Christmas presents.
In the video, she didnât mention the wrapping paper cutter she was using. However, in the next slide on her Stories, she posted a link to the product, insisting it was âthe BEST oneâ sheâs used.
Stacey then said that the âlast link sold outâ, so said sheâd put together a âwhole list of the same cutters together on this link that are the same style as mineâ.
Disappointed fans took to Mumsnet to share their thoughts, with one writing: âI used to like her and find her relatable but sheâs just a savvy saleswoman.â
âI donât blame her but it doesnât make her very likeable in my opinion and she comes across quite fakeâŠâ another agreed.
Reselling products on Vinted
A celebrity side hustle used to mean a star flogging their new perfume, or an famous singer launching their make-up line. But now itâs all about offloading their tat on sites like Vinted â and Staceyâs sister Jemma has also jumped on this tacky bandwagon.
After closing her once-popular home organisation business at the end of last year, the nurse was seen re-selling TV star Staceyâs brand new products for reduced prices on the marketplace.
According to Mail Online, Jemmaâs Vinted page includes items from At Home With Stacey Solomon collection for George at Asda. These include boxes of wine glasses sold for ÂŁ2 (retail ÂŁ8) and a three-pack of candlesticks that made Jemma a quick ÂŁ2 (retail ÂŁ14). A black tablecloth and matching napkins were also on sale for ÂŁ4 (worth ÂŁ23 combined).
As well as this, sheâs also managed to sell a wash bag from Staceyâs haircare brand REHAB for just ÂŁ2 and a limited edition âDesigned by Staceyâ Abbott Lyon âMoon and Back Two Tone Belgravia 30 watchâ.
It currently retails for ÂŁ149, but was reduced to and sold for ÂŁ10 on Jemmaâs Vinted page, which boasts close to 19,000 followers. Launching the news on Facebook earlier this year, Jemma claimed that all the profits will be donated âto charityâ.
The 37-year-old also pointed her social media followers towards her Amazon affiliate link. Amazon influencers can earn a percentage of commission when people click through personalised links and complete a purchase.
Sharing her thoughts on celebs flogging their old clothing â and in many cases, items theyâve blagged for free, freelance fashion editor Clemmie Fieldsend previously said: âWhile they are free to do what they want with their possessions, thereâs something galling about the privileged few selling off unwanted items on resale apps at a time when the rest of us are tightening our belts and grappling with sky-high energy bills.
âIt doesnât sit right that celebrities are tapping into that market just to top up their holiday fund, which they are also likely getting partly for free, in return for a social media plug. And they are not putting much effort into it either.â
Sort Your Life Out fury
Since first airing in 2021, Staceyâs BBC show Sort Your Life Out has become a weekly staple for many households across the nation. But that doesnât mean that the show hasnât had its fair share of criticism by eagle-eyed fans, with X users accusing Stacey of being a âcopycatâ as it had similarities to Nick Knowlesâ Big House Clear Out.
One viewer wrote: âHasnât Nick Knowles done this warehouse clear out on his show?â Someone else said: âStacey Solomon appears to be duplicating Nick Knowles and throwing rubbish out. Who copied who?â
However, others lunged to her defence, explaining that Staceyâs trailer had aired way before Nickâs. âA reminder that if people would research a bit more, Staceyâs pilot aired months ago, before Nick Knowlesâ on Channel 5 did,â chimed one fan.
But thatâs not all â as last year, the programme was blasted for featuring a âwastefulâ family on an âinsaneâ episode where it was revealed they had a whopping 6,568 items of clothing, 39 phone chargers and more than 1,000 kitchen utensils.
And it wasnât long before critics raced to share their thoughts, with one writing: âThis #sortyourlifeout is absolutely tone deaf.â
A second agreed and wrote: âThis is the worst one ever Iâd just leave them all to it.â
Sham wedding
Sort Your Life Out taps into this fantasy of an organised and intentional domestic life. But outside, Staceyâs household âis making headlines for tension behind the cameras and a marriage that hasnât been legally registeredâ, Georgia told us â and âthe gap between whatâs being sold to audiences and what is the realityâ only grows.
The couple held a lavish ceremony at their Essex home in 2022 but didnât follow it up and make it legal. A source previously explained: âThey always intended to do the legal part, but with six kids and busy diaries just havenât got round to it â life has got in the way.â
Georgia said: âAudiences who bought into her story and invested in her family, relationships and success feel particularly sore when that story turns out to be curated rather than candid, because they felt they were getting the ârealâ version or her, but this seems not to be the case.â
But can she survive the troubles and win her once-loyal fans back? According to Georgia, not all is lost for Stacey â as long as there is a rebrand.
âThe key is not trying to hide that she is successful, but reframing this success in a way that feels honest rather than contradictory. Audiences are not asking her to pretend she isnât wealthy, but they are asking her to stop pretending she isnât.
âThere is a version of Stacey Solomon that could work extremely well right now, one that owns her journey from East London to a ÂŁ1.2 million Essex home and an eight-figure business empire, and brings her audience along for that ride with transparency rather than a poorly managed, out-of-date brand.
âThis version of her, as a once mocked, teenage mum from Dagenham, to a successful businesswoman, is actually far more interesting than the faux-homemaker. This era has run its course, and the sooner she and her team accept that, the sooner they can build something new and far more genuine.â











