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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

See all MNHQ comments on this thread

Original poster

To think Myleene Klass will win no friends with this...

500 replies

CarlaVeloso · 05/02/2015 11:46

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/11391753/Myleene-Klass-Ill-be-collecting-unicorn-money-for-my-daughters-birthday.html

She has tweeted two emails from mothers at her daughter's school asking for cash donations for their children's birthday parties. She's changed their names but clearly they are still recognisable to anyone with children in that class and presumably the whole school will know about it nowthat it's been published in the papers and online.

I agree the emails are completely crass and I would privately think the same but they haven't committed any crime or sent her an expletive-filled rant about something. I opened it expecting to see a request for an actual kindle when they are just suggesting £10. Crass, vulgar, materialistic etc etc, yes, but I think her response (shaming them publicly) is really nasty and may not win her or her DD any friends at the school gate.

OP posts:
squoosh · 05/02/2015 12:23

It's the publicising of it to her thousands of followers that's the problem. It's a bit shortsighted I think in terms of the impact it could have on her daughter.

MrsTawdry · 05/02/2015 12:24

I think the school MK is involved with must be very bitchy. She commented on Twitter that she'd sent her "reply" and got loads back from other mums then put a crying with laughter emoticon...she must HATE the Mothers who've arranged this party!

nottheOP · 05/02/2015 12:24

I read it in the DM and thought that she must actually be an MNer. If she called them grabby and entitled then you'd be searching for her NN!!

MrsTawdry · 05/02/2015 12:25

Squoosh yes. Is she a bit thick do you think? surely not? She must just be "bulletproof* as the school "celeb mum".

We have a celeb mum at our village school and she's SO low profile it's obvious that she's really NOT keen to be famous at the school gates. I reckon MK is all hair tossing and "Inner circle" at hers.

squoosh · 05/02/2015 12:26

I was once behind her ex-husband in a queue at the airport (shame on me for recognising him). He was bitching about her non stop.

As annoying MK is, he's a convicted heroin dealer who ditched her 5 mins after marrying her so I gave his back a disdainful look.

Original poster
CarlaVeloso · 05/02/2015 12:26

I wonder if she stopped to think about the girls whose birthdays it is? That the publicity might be a tad embarrassing for them? And her own DD?

Sorry, no klass at all.

OP posts:
forago · 05/02/2015 12:28

i agree with sixgeese. At my dc school people often ask the birthday kids mum what he/she would like and the mum then sends out an email with ideas - often with say a computer game or something that people might want to club together for. I have also never spent less than a tenner for a kids birthday party.

Agree that the "suggested" donation is the only off bit. Given that her kids are no doubt at a private school I dont think this is surprising or shocking in any way really.

MrsTawdry · 05/02/2015 12:29

Forago exactly. Makes me think she's got a vendetta out on the Mum in question!

roslet · 05/02/2015 12:30

However cheeky and grabbing she found the email, it really is unkind to use her relative fame to make fun of the party parents. It is a bitchy example to set her daughters.

fairisledog · 05/02/2015 12:30

I have to say I'm a bit more on the fence about this than I used to be.

One of my dc was invited to a whole class party recently and there was a group message asking about food allergies/dislikes etc to parents of the kids invited who were already fb friends with the birthday child's parents.

One mother asked if there was anything in particular birthday child might like to receive or were they saving up for a big item at the moment and the response was that this child too was saving up for a kindle (their older sibling got one for Christmas and the birthday child was always wanting to have a go with it and really really wanted one now) so if we'd like to give them a little cash it would be much appreciated as they had already received a lot of toys/other stuff etc at Christmas but other than that X or Y or Z were the sort of stuff they liked.

Lots of us posted that a cash donation suited us just fine and we'd pop it in the birthday card. I'd say there would have been at least £50 raised that way which would surely go a long way towards the target.

The main difference is that the parents didn't ask up front, they responded to a query about the matter and their child was genuinely saving up for something they'd set their heart on. I'd be surprised at a child setting their heart on a desk but perhaps that's just by comparison with my children Wink.

I think next time I will be that parent that asks the question about giving cash towards a big item. There'll still be other presents but when it's a large party with many guests there is such a thing as present overload.

We only have smaller gatherings so it's not an issue for us.

jennymac · 05/02/2015 12:33

I don't think there was anything particularly wrong with with suggesting that parents contribute 10 (if they want) to buying a particular item. Having two primary school age children myself who are regularly invited to parties, I would see this as getting off lightly! My ds (7) had a party last week and all but one boy gave him a card with money instead of a present which was a relief as the house is coming down with plastic tat as it is. Anyway regardless of whether or not I agree with what the other parents had done, I don't agree that MK should have tweeted it as it is just going to cause upset and offence and all for nothing in my opinion.

Meechimoo · 05/02/2015 12:35

I suspect she's done this because she sends a nanny or granny to do the school run. I'd only feel confident doing this if I never had to face the playground mafia and face the fallout. The email was very grabby but Myleene s reply was silly and very catty.

DropYourSword · 05/02/2015 12:35

Is it the normal thing for every kid in a class to attend birthday parties and buy presents? Definitely wasn't when I was in school!

DropYourSword · 05/02/2015 12:36

If tweeting it causes embarrassment and offence, doesn't that imply that they shouldn't have sent the emails in the first place.

Aherdofmims · 05/02/2015 12:39

Her opposition to the mansion tax had already put me off, particularly the way in which she chose to express it.

You can't get a garage for that in London? What do I live in then, a garden shed?

squoosh · 05/02/2015 12:40

I forgot about her tittish mansion tax wankery.

INickedAName · 05/02/2015 12:41

The email sounds awful, makes the £10 request sound anything but non obligatory, and if you should go with anything less that the popular amount of £10 then the gift won't be "class" Why can't they ask the family of birthday child to pitch in and buy something together rather than a bunch of mostly strangers. Like when gran asks what dgc would like, they could suggest this, still think it's rude but more the norm to ask family for money as gifts.

My dd would quite like a new ipad, it's her birthday in a few weeks, she has friends coming out for the day with us, certainly won't be asking for cash donations towards an ipad, dd will just be happy that we are able to go out and that her friends can come, the ipad can wait.

Aherdofmims · 05/02/2015 12:42

Although actually this reply is quite funny. But I agree she has misused her celebrity but publishing it.

squoosh · 05/02/2015 12:43

'If tweeting it causes embarrassment and offence, doesn't that imply that they shouldn't have sent the emails in the first place.'

Then she should have just said that straight to the sender of the the email. What does she think she's going to achieve by this, lead a revolution against grabby present requests?

More likely she thought it would be a good way indulge in a bit of self promotion.

4PlusMum · 05/02/2015 12:46

Firstly, I think that this is a publicity stunt by Myleen and I don't believe that the email came from parents in her daughter's class. She will have seen the attention give to the odious Katie Hopkins, and probably wants the publicity of 'putting it out there'.

If true, whilst worded badly, the principle is not such a bad thing. I know of one local school where the convention have been for all parents in a class to chip in £5 for a joint present. That's £135 from a class of 28 kids and it means the birthday child gets something they need/want bought with input from the parents rather than 27 pieces of £5 tat. It is of course optional and as long as no one feels forced to participate I think it is a great idea. I floated it at DDs school and most were in favour but it was not unanimous and as a new parent I did not want to be pushy.

Binkybix · 05/02/2015 12:46

Exactly - if she actually cared she should have just spoken to the senders.

I'd forgotten what a huge twat she was on the mansion tax debate. What a wanker.

I'm not a fan!

tinklykeys · 05/02/2015 12:49

Just read about this on the BBC website (slow news day?!) and immediately came over here to see what you were all saying. I think the email may have been annoying, but well intentioned. I thought her public shaming was a really nasty thing to do.

At least if she'd done a Aibu it would have been anonymous. But I'm assuming she thinks of herself as being in a different Klass to the rest of the mums, so won't mind being alienated for the rest of her daughter's school life...

Moominmarvellous · 05/02/2015 12:50

Her response is completely OTT in my opinion.

School gate/Birthday party politics is a minefield! If a few of the mums had clubbed together for something and she found she hadn't been given the opportunity to contribute (as the email said it was optional after all) then she'd be bleating on about her daughter being left out. That scenario is much less headline grabbing mind you.

She probably sent disclaimer before that anyway informing parents that she was trying to muscle in on Katie Hopkins territory while she's away and the email has no relation to those living or dead......

OttiliaVonBCup · 05/02/2015 12:50

If she's posted here, anonymously , we all would have agreed with her.

Good on her.

forago · 05/02/2015 12:51

I also agree that, whilst this is actually an ok idea if handled properly, she is also a massive dick.

I decided this when she had a baby and wrote her obligatory minor celeb "I am the first person in the Western world, ever, to have a baby and this is how you must all do it, even those of you who have already had several children before me, you're all doing it wrong" tome. She has done nothing to disabuse me of that notion since.