Heather Mills versus The Media

Dressed in a floor length black dress Heather Mills was greeted with loud applause and a barrage of flash photography as she walked on stage at Trinity College Dublin last night. Ms. Mills was visiting the capital as she was made an Honorary Patron of the Philosophical Society in Trinity College.

The activist and former model is known to have a turbulent relationship with the media. Her recent outburst on British television highlighted her anger and frustration at the media who she believes have treated her as if she was a paedophile or a murderer and have even pushed her to the point of contemplating suicide.

Before she began her speech she highlighted her skepticism of the media and urged the crowd present to take notes as it would be a perfect example of "what you will hear tonight will not be what is reported tomorrow". Ms. Mills proceeded to give a speech about her life, from her troubled upbringing to losing her leg in 1993 when she was hit by a police motorbike all the while being photgraphed by the large media presence.

With no signs of the photographers stopping she questioned them saying, "have you still not got your photographs yet" and asked "can we stop them now do you think...so we can focus on the students and doing the proper story." The crowd rallied with her and applauded in support of her actions, while the media later accused her of 'snapping' at and 'ejecting' the photographers present from the event.

Free from the flash photography Ms. Mills continued talking, however not once in her speech or the questions posed to her after did she mention her ex husband Sir Paul McCartney and their marriage break up. When asked how she coped with all the publicity surrounding her she said that she managed to cope by "having a sense of humour."

Ms. Mills received the honour from the Philosophical Society in recognition of the work she has done in connection with animal rights, anti landmine initiatives and support for amputees. She pointed out how she convinced Paris Hilton to stop wearing fur but she was critical of other celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez and Naomi Campbell for failing to follow suit.

Ms. Mills follows a long list of famous figures who have received the honorary patronage of Trinity College Philosophical Society which include actor Al Pacino, US Senator John McCain, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and our own Taoiseach Bertie Ahern.