Leona Lewis has accused Michael Costello of bullying her in the lead-up to a charity fashion show.
On Monday, designer Costello took to social media to allege that Chrissy Teigen had bullied him so badly in 2014 that he had "thoughts of suicide" after she had accused him of racism after seeing what he claims was a fake racist post Photoshopped by a "former disgruntled employee". Costello’s allegation came shortly after the Lip Sync Battle presenter had posted a lengthy apology on Medium for her past online behaviour, including sending "awful tweets" to reality TV personality Courtney Stodden.
But on Tuesday, Lewis uploaded an open letter to her Instagram Stories in which she recalled an “uncomfortable” encounter with Costello, again in 2014, after he had agreed to outfit her for an event in New York City.
“When I got to my fitting I was made to feel very awkward and uncomfortable as the dress was a sample size and he/his team clearly did not want to alter it to fit me,” she began. “This came as a total surprise because weeks prior I was told that they would the dress work for me. At the next fitting, the night before the show, with no explanation at all, Michael refused to turn up. He no longer wanted to dress me and he abandoned his commitments to me and the show which made me well aware that I wasn’t the body type required.”
Lewis went on to describe how her experience with Costello had left her with body image issues.
“I was so embarrassed and deeply hurt. Because I didn’t look like a model size, I wasn’t permitted to walk in his dress,” the Bleeding Love singer claimed. “I remember having to come up with excuses as I was so humiliated by it all... I was left with deep insecurities after this and I’ve had to work hard over the years to love my body.”
To conclude her message, Lewis insisted that she didn’t want to “discount” Costello’s story, but indicated that she didn’t feel like he chose the right moment to come forward with his allegations.
“I wish him so much love and healing. I’m sure this will come as a shock as I’ve never told him how I feel,” she added. “But the pot calling the kettle black in this situation doesn’t sit right with me. Bullying comes in many different forms. We need love, we need accountability, we need forgiveness, none of us are perfect.”
Costello has not yet responded to Lewis's claims.
