Kate Winslet wins libel damages over "false" fitness claims

Nov 3, 2009, 11:36 GMT

London - British actress Kate Winslet has accepted libel damages of 25,000 pounds (40,700 dollars) in a dispute with a newspaper over her fitness regime, her lawyer said Tuesday.

The 34-year-old Oscar-winning actress had sued the Daily Mail newspaper over an article entitled: 'Should Kate Winslet win an Oscar for the world's most irritating actress?'

Her lawyer, Rachel Atkins, said the story, which was accompanied by several nude photographs of the actress in various films, was offensive in tone.

'The claimant has frequently asserted the right of women to accept the way that they look and by accusing her of trying to mislead the public, the defendant caused her a great deal of distress. It was simply not true,' said Atkins.

Winslet, who was not in the High Court in London to hear the decision, said in a statement that she was 'delighted' that the newspaper had apologized for 'making false allegations about me.'

'I was particularly upset to be accused of lying about my exercise regime...I had a responsibility to request an apology in order to demonstrate my commitment to the views that I have always expressed about body issues, including diet and exercise.'

'I strongly believe that women should be encouraged to accept themselves as they are, so to suggest that I was lying was an unacceptable accusation of hypocrisy,' said the statement.