SOPHIE Hinchcliffe seems to have it all – a net worth of over £5 million, a sprawling £2 million Essex farmhouse set on an idyllic 1.7 acres of land and a perfect family-of-five.
But in a year that has already been unimaginably painful, the cleanfluencer – who lost her beloved dad, Alan in April 2024 – has been facing another crippling battle where she admits she faced abuse and harassments hourly.
But there might be a glimmer of hope that helps ease her pain[/caption]
The mum-of-three admitted to the ‘deep unimaginable pain’ of suddenly losing her dad and has been public about how she is still struggling to cope in a selfless effort to help others. But amid the agony of her grief, she also quietly became one of the biggest targets for trolls and the dark underbelly of the web.
Cutting, vindictive comments like ‘This is fake grief’ and ‘you’re an awful mother and a disgusting human being’ became the norm as ragebaiters – who had marked her early on as a target to attack – exploited her pain.
435 threads of strangers discussing her life with husband Jamie and sons Ronnie, 6, Lennie, 3 and newborn Vinnie, and tearing it apart gained traction everyday. And the platform that did NOTHING to monitor it… the recently exposed Tattle Life.
Despite keeping her pain a secret for years, Mrs Hinch, who has 4.8 million Instagram followers, finally had her say on the hourly abuse and harassment and now, those close to her, have told Fabulous the end of the toxic forum has given Sophie, 35, a much needed glimmer of hope.
Writing on Instagram, the mum-of-three said: “The website that has damaged my mental health and harassed me and my family beyond words for over 6 years.
“They’ve stalked me, lied about me, mocked me and my beautiful children. Accused me of the unthinkable, brainwashed my supporters.
“Sickening behaviour that l’ve silently had to put up with every single day. My thread (as I’m sure you’ve seen) is one of the largest on there, with hourly abuse.”
Earlier this month Sebastian Bond, a vegan influencer was unveiled as the site’s creator following a defamation lawsuit filed by Neil and Donna Sands, a couple from Northern Ireland.
Thanks to The Sands, who were targeted by those on the site, Sebastian was found to be the anonymous founder and they have been awarded £150,000 each.
Now it seems their justice is a small win for Sophie too.
Mrs Hinch paid tribute to her dad who sadly passed away last year[/caption]
Grief Stricken
Sharing the news of the loss of her father last year, alongside touching photos, she wrote: “My life, our whole world, has been turned upside down.
“My loving Dad, Our boys beloved Grandad, Your workshop is locked up and I sleep with the key. I promise to keep your workshop dream going.
Sophie has been open about still struggling with the grief[/caption]
“Until we meet and sing together again. Goodnight Dad. My absolute king. Your Bubberloo.”
A year on, she admitted time had done little to heal her pain and took to Instagram saying: “I literally scream out loud in the garden everyday so I can catch my breath, I fall to my knees everyday, I feel sick countless times a day.”
But while most fled to support her cruel trolls on Tattle life dubbed her grief as ‘fake’ while others have said ‘What does she want, a bleeping gold medal in grief?’ and ‘Jesus she’s really milking this isn’t she.’
An insider told Fabulous: “It’s no secret life has been really difficult for Sophie since her beloved dad, Alan, passed away and while she’s been open with her fans about her grief, there’s so much more going on behind the scenes.
“She was becoming increasingly miserable about the posts she’d see on Tattle Life and was getting really anxious about it. Some of the rubbish written on there has been sick.
“There were mocking posts about Alan and stuff about Sophie ‘milking’ her grief – it’s no wonder it hit a nerve and has caused her so much upset. It’s genuinely unbelievable what people were coming out with, one person called her “self indulgent” for grieving, which was a real kick in the teeth for her.”
When did Mrs Hinch’s dad pass away?
Her father actually died on April 25, 2024, but his grieving daughter waited until she was ready to share the sad news with her fans.
In April 2023, Sophie revealed how she was taking a break social media after her dad ended up in hospital.
She said at the time: “My dad is in hospital at the moment guys. My dad has never been blessed shall we say with fantastic health – from his chest, his lungs, his heart.
“He’s always struggled you know.”
She heartbreakingly added: “I just want him to be happy.”
Sophie and her youngest son have battled health scares this year[/caption]
Health Worries
That’s not the only sick abuse hurled at Sophie in the last year as bitter trolls also lined up to hurl abuse their way over their autism diagnosis.
Back in 2023 she bravely announced their health diagnosis on social media.
“Both Ron and I have had confirmation for a while now,” she penned.
And if only everyone accepted and understood autism, the world really would be a much better place.
Sophie Hinchcliffe
“We decided as a family to take our time to process, to learn, to grow and to find our way together before we shared.
“So, that’s exactly what we did and are continuing to do each day.
“We have hard days but we also have lots of magical days.
“And if only everyone accepted and understood autism, the world really would be a much better place.
“Ronnie, thank you for being ours, for being so precious and simply incredible. Because of you everything finally made sense to me after 33 years.”
Autism is a neuro-divergence where your brain works in a different way to other people.
It’s something you’re born with, but signs might not be spotted until you’re an adult.
But despite the diagnosis, trolls were quick to claim the mum would use it as a cash grab.
One user on Tattle Life said: “God she’s going to make autism her whole personality now isn’t she.”
“Autism for likes. A new but not surprising low. Ron’s diagnosis is not hers to share publicly. Shame on her as a mother,” another said.
The insider said: “Right now, she’s focused on building herself up again after a really difficult year. She’s also dealing with both her and Ronnie’s autism diagnosis. She’s an incredible mum and is committed to making life as easy and wonderful as she can for Ron, but as any parent dealing with an autistic child will know, there are many challenges. let alone the ones she faces herself.
Earlier this year, after the birth of her youngest son, Vinnie, Sophie was rushed to hospital after suffering with a blood clot in her groin, pelvis, and leg, which required an emergency operation.
Her son Vinnie was also suffering weeks after being born and was in hospital for a week before being diagnosed with reflux and CMPA but also Laryngomalacia.
Her boys are thankfully now home[/caption]
What is autism?
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is an incurable, lifelong developmental condition that affects how people perceive the world and interact with others.
It affects around one in 100 people in the UK and is three to four times more common in boys than in girls.
Many people with ASD find it hard to understand other people’s feelings and emotions, and they may have difficulty holding conversations.
When they are young, their language development may take longer and they can struggle to use facial expressions, using gestures to communicate instead.
They may also find it hard to connect with other people and to hold eye contact with unfamiliar individuals.
Many children with ASD like to follow a routine, and changes to this can cause distress.
High functioning autism is an informal term some people use to describe those on the autism spectrum disorder.
Friend Fued
As well as facing a string of health issues within her family, Sophie has also had to deal with constant rumours that she and her best friend and BBC presenter Stacey Solomon have fallen out.
The pair, both from Essex, rose to fame on social media with their DIY and cleaning videos and formed a close friendship.
Rumours fly about Mrs Hinch and Stacey Solomon’s friendship[/caption]
They regularly shared images and videos of them and their families together, and Sophie was even a bridesmaid at Stacey’s wedding to Joe Swash, 42, back in 2022.
However, rumours of tension quickly surfaced as it seemed Stacey had cut Sophie out of her wedding photos on Instagram.
I knew she would make sure that **** was dumped from her wedding photos.
Tattle Life User
On top of this, when Sophie announced her third pregnancy after her father passed away, a public message from Stacey was deleted.
Stacey penned: “I love you. And I’m so so happy for this beautiful blessing on all of you. Dad must be beaming.”
The message was swiftly deleted, but it is unsure if Sophie or Stacey did so.
Tattle Life users have been quick to speculate on the reason and even enjoy the speculated fall out.
“I knew she would make sure that **** was dumped from her wedding photos,” wrote one.
“She didn’t send it on private (which she 100 percent should have) is so she can get attention from the post Stacy doesn’t do anything or post anything that doesn’t benefit her,” another penned.
The insider added: “She’s also constantly having to fight off rumours that she’s fallen out with Stacey Solomon, a close friend, and this weighs on her too. So add to that all this Tattle nonsense and it was just another thing on her plate.”
The pair were once inseparable[/caption]
Glimmer of Hope
Sophie has publicly responded to the founder of Tattle Life being found out and is thrilled someone will be held to account for the bullying and harassment she and many others in the public eye have faced.
The site which attracted 12 million visitors a month was launched seven years ago and supposedly aimed at exposing disingenuous influencers, but has earned the name of a ‘troll site; to abuse anyone they see fit.’
Since it was created in 2017, the founder was anonymous, but it was found out after fashion brand owner Donna Sands and her husband Neil took the owner to court in Northern Ireland, Sebastian’s identity was lifted last week.
Mrs Hinch was one of the first celebrities to congratulate them on the win on an Instagram post.
The Insider said: “Now she knows the site has been exposed, it feels like a real weight has been lifted. She never ever felt the need to filter herself when it came to speaking about Alan, but the posts on Tattle definitely devastated her, knowing people were out there openly mocking her pain.
“Sophie was careful not to be public about her pain though, she hates to give any credence to false reports and made up rumours but that in turn was causing her a lot of internal stress.
“So now, seeing the start of the takedown of the site, she’s both relieved and angry. She’s happy that it’s (hopefully) on the way out but she’s questioning why such awful stories and opinions were ever allowed to be published in the first place.
“Those closest to her wouldn’t be surprised if she took legal action herself following the successful ruling for Sands’ but she’ll no doubt bide her time and consider her options. Either way she is one of the most targeted celebrities on there, so she’d be well within her rights to take Sebastian and Tattle to court.
“She sees this latest development as a silver lining to an otherwise very dark year.”
Donna and Neil Sands managed to sue the site for defamation[/caption]
