Move over Samantha Brick, there’s a new whinger in town.
Meet Laura Fernee, a 33-year-old academic who claims she was hounded out of her work because of her beauty.
Fernee, who has a PhD and worked as a scientific researcher, has been unemployed for two years and now lives with her parents, who very kindly pay for her flat, shopping and expenses – to the tune of £2,000 a month.
Laura Fernee discusses the curse of beauty on This Morning
They also pay her £700 monthly hairdressing bill, the Daily Mail reports.
Fernee, who is penning a book on her ordeal, appeared on This Morning to talk about her plight, explaining she underwent “some negative situations relating to how I looked”, leaving her “quite traumatised.”
In her clipped accent, she added: “And in the end, as much as I loved my work, going in to work became very, very difficult because of the psychological impact on me.”
She recalled one particularly heinous incident which saw one of her professors advise her “never to wear pearls to work” if she wanted to be taken seriously.
Fernee was joined on the couch by former The Apprentice contestant and businesswoman Katie Hopkins, who gently advised her to develop a thicker skin.
Fernee was joined on the sofa by Katie Hopkins, who basically told her to man up
She said: “I think one of the things [to remember] is trying to embrace being fantastically good looking as opposed to letting people make you feel you cannot go to a job because you are so frightened about going to it, which is a terrible thing.
“I think social media has become a way for people to get to you very personally...it is very hurtful if you let it be, so I think you have to try and get this thick skin that says, ‘do you know what, I have been working towards my PhD, I am a smart woman, I can do that...’.”
Hopkins added: “Typically I would say you have to be stronger, you have to get a grip, you have to move forward, but that can be done in stages. You have to take steps and I think, say, ‘I will not allow myself to be frightened any more, I will take myself back into the workplace because I have a great job that I can do.”
In a separate interview with The Mirror, Fernee revealed her male colleagues were solely interested in her appearance.
Samantha Brick has also defended herself on ITV's This Morning
“I wanted them to recognise my achievements and my professionalism but all they saw was my face and body.
“I was constantly asked out on dates, or found romantic gifts and notes at my desk. I found it sleazy and uncomfortable.
“Even when I was in a laboratory in scrubs with no make-up they still came onto me because of my natural attractiveness. There was nothing I could do to stop it.”
Fernee told the Mail: “I’m not lazy and I’m no bimbo. The truth is my good looks have caused massive problems for me when it comes to employment, so I’ve made the decision that employment just isn’t for me at the moment. It’s not my fault… I can’t help the way I look.”
Fernee’s “problem” is similar to the plight of fellow "don't hate me because I'm beautiful" complainer Brick – who became famous for claiming her life had been blighted by the jealousy other women experienced when confronted with her mesmerising beauty.
In the column that launched her career, Brick recounted the time the pilot of her plane sent her a bottle of champagne in admiration for her beauty, how barmen frequently wave away her money when she tries to pay for drinks and the occasion a stranger in the street randomly presented her with a bouquet of flowers.
She wrote: "Whenever I’ve asked what I’ve done to deserve such treatment, the donors of these gifts have always said the same thing: my pleasing appearance and pretty smile made their day."
Despite the hardships faced by both women, perhaps they ought to spare a thought for Omar Borkan Al Gala, who was apparently deemed so ridiculously good looking he was thrown out of a country.