Sinéad O'Connor boycotts BBC Woman's Hour after 'offensive and misogynistic' interview
Sinéad O'Connor has declared she is boycotting BBC's Woman's Hour after being subjected to "offensive and misogynistic" questions on the show.
The Nothing Compares 2 U singer – who also uses the name Shuhada Sadaqat after converting to Islam in 2018 – was asked by the Radio 4 magazine show's new host Emma Barnett about being called a "crazy lady" and having children with multiple partners.
O'Connor, 54, tweeted afterwards: "Actually found the interview with @Emmabarnett extremely offensive and even misogynistic. One abusive and invalidating question or statement after another: 'madwoman in the attic' At that point I should have ended it. I will absolutely never do Women’s hour again."
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Barnett, 36, asked the Irish musician – who has spoken publicly about suffering from clinical depression and bipolar disorder and having attempted suicide several times – how she felt about being described as "the crazy lady in pop's attic".
Actually found the interview with @Emmabarnett extremely offensive and even misogynistic. One abusive and invalidating question or statement after another: "madwoman in the attic" At that point I should have ended it. I will absolutely never do Women’s hour again.
— Sinead O'Connor (Shuhada Sadaqat) (@MagdaDavitt77) June 1, 2021
O'Connor was clearly taken aback by the question, answering: "I think it's a bit extreme to make the Jane Eyre comparison, I don't think I've ever been perceived as 'the crazy lady in pop's attic' as represented in Jane Eyre...
"It's not like I'm trying to attack people with knives or trying to strangle people while I'm walking around in my nightdress."
The singer was referring to the character of Bertha Mason from Charlotte Brontë's novel Jane Eyre, who is kept locked in an attic by her husband Mr Rochester because she is violent.
O'Connor – who announced last November that she was entering treatment for trauma and drug addiction – also apologised for any offence she had caused by comparing herself to a Jamaican man because she has four children, all with different partners.
The No Man's Woman singer is mother to Jake, 33, with music producer John Reynolds, Roisin, 24, with journalist John Waters, Jake, 16, with musician Donal Lunny, and Yeshua, 14, with businessman Frank Bonadio.
She told Barnett: "I'm kind of like a Jamaican father, fathers say is a revolving door in my house.
"Nobody bats an eyelid when Jamaican fellas have kids with f**king – sorry didn't mean to say that – they have kids with tons of people and no one bats an eyelid."
When Barnett commented some people might find the comparison offensive, O'Connor said: "I wasn't stereotyping, I was talking about a particular man, I can't remember his name. I have to stop you there... I'm not generalising on Jamaican people. They are my favourite people on earth, they're the greatest people on Planet Earth...
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"The fact is, lots of them have lots of kids with lots of women and nobody bats a f**king eyelid. I can name you a hundred men."
Also, apologies if I accidentally offended Jamaican men. I was referring to specific friends of mine in the music business. Jamaican people are my favourite people on this earth and Jamaican male musicians my biggest inspiration. https://t.co/4S9cT9X1An
— Sinead O'Connor (Shuhada Sadaqat) (@MagdaDavitt77) June 1, 2021
The singer later tweeted: "Also, apologies if I accidentally offended Jamaican men. I was referring to specific friends of mine in the music business. Jamaican people are my favourite people on this earth and Jamaican male musicians my biggest inspiration."
