Stacey Dooley has said she is “not OK” with people telling her what decisions to make in her career, although she does not mind a bit of criticism.
The documentary-maker and Strictly Come Dancing champion recently announced that she would be hosting a new make-up competition programme on BBC Three but some critics said that it was “trivial” work.
Speaking at the launch of the Strictly UK Arena Tour in Birmingham, Dooley said that she does not “mind too much” about the response regarding her hosting role on the new TV show, called Glow Up: Britain’s Next Make-Up Star.
She said: “I understand that people are entitled to their own opinions, but I’m not OK with people telling me, at 31, what to do and what decisions to make.
“I’m a strong woman, I’ve always been vocal, I’m capable of fighting my own corner. I’m good.”
She said, of being able to do lighter work away from her hard-hitting documentaries, that she feels “really fortunate”.
She added: “I think it’s nice to be able to do the serious stuff, and I go back to work, like proper work, next month, but I think it’s nice to show both sides, and you don’t have to pigeonhole yourself into, ‘I’m only this or I’m only that’.”
Last week, Dooley responded to criticism over the make-up programme on Twitter, writing: “For those tellin me you’re suddenly doing ‘trivial’ work…I’ve been filming stories covering rape, incest, drugs, murder and war for a decade.
For those tellin me you’re suddenly doing ‘trivial’ work…I’ve been filming stories covering rape, incest, drugs, murder and war for a decade.
It’s a privilege to cover these issues, but I also need to take time out to enjoy the lighter side of life.
— Stacey Dooley (@StaceyDooley) January 10, 2019
“It’s a privilege to cover these issues, but I also need to take time out to enjoy the lighter side of life.”
Dooley, who won Strictly in December, is among the stars hitting the road on the tour, which kicks off on Friday at the Arena Birmingham.
Other stars on the tour include fellow finalists Joe Sugg, Faye Tozer and Ashley Roberts.
Dooley will dance with Aljaz Skorjanec on the tour rather than her show partner Kevin Clifton, who is starring in the UK tour of musical Rock Of Ages.
The tour will also visit the First Direct Arena in Leeds, the Manchester Arena, Liverpool’s Echo Arena, Glasgow’s SSE Hydro and the SSE Arena Wembley.