Katie Hopkins trolls Sydney's lockdown from hotel quarantine. Photo / Instagram/KatieHopkins
Katie Hopkins trolls Sydney's lockdown from hotel quarantine. Photo / Instagram/KatieHopkins
A British celebrity currently in Sydney's hotel quarantine has labelled lockdown "bulls**t" and is openly mocking safety rules.
Katie Hopkins, once dubbed "the world's most hated woman", is rumoured to have flown into Australia to appear on Big Brother.
Hopkins courted controversy in 2019 when she criticised PM Jacinda Ardern after she wore a hijab in the wake of the Christchurch mosque attacks.
The 46-year-old far-right political commentator took to Instagram Live at 5am on Saturday to "call out" the Sydney and Melbourne lockdowns.
The mum-of-three also said she had been deliberately trying to defy hotel quarantine rules during her mandatory 14-day stint by opening her door to workers delivering her food naked.
But her views have been condemned by angry Australians, especially those stranded overseas unable to return due to arrivals caps, who branded Hopkins "bloody ridiculous".
'Lockdown is hoax'
Hopkins told followers she wanted to be "very clear" she was able to get into Australia thanks to her career as a "gobby mouth", stressing it wasn't a method "anyone else can follow".
"I think it's bulls**t. I think it's bulls**t that I can be here and you can't," she said.
"I think it's bulls**t that families who need to visit relatives here, whether they're dying or not... it's bulls**t that I'm here, and you can't be."
She went on to say that since the start of the pandemic she has always claimed "lockdown is and will always remain the greatest hoax in human history".
Hopkins said she hadn't entered the country as a "VIP" though recognised the room she was in was "very lovely" compared to the hotels in the UK people have been forced to quarantine in.
Katie Hopkins called Australia's lockdowns 'bulls**t'. Photo / Instagram/KatieHopkins
'Frighten the s**t out of the workers'
She also stated that completing mandatory quarantine was her way of "calling out" lockdown – admitting she had deliberately been flouting rules issued to her by Federal Police when escorted to the hotel.
"I've been told when they bring three meals a day to the door... I have to wait 30 seconds before opening the door," she said.
"And then I can open the door but only with a face mask."
Instead, she has said she has been "lying in wait" in the bathroom naked, sprinting to the door to "frighten the s**t out of them [the workers] and do it naked with no face mask".
During her lengthy video that lasted almost 30 minutes, Katie also admitted she had been standing naked at her 28th floor window in a bid to flash the office workers, but there were none.
Stranded Aussies furious
Backlash to the video from Australians came fast, with many branding it "ridiculous" Hopkins could enter the country while they have waited 18 months to get home.
There are thought to be as many as 34,000 Australians overseas who are trying to get home, yet just 3000 weekly spots.
That's down from a cap of almost 6500 previously after the federal government agreed to further limit arrivals in an attempt to lessen the risk of further Covid-19 leaks from hotel quarantine.
"Why are you able to fly here and use up a valuable quarantine vacancy when we have reduced caps on arrivals. I haven't seen my parents for over 18 months now… There are stranded Australians not able to get home to see dying live ones," one wrote.
"You have queue jumped and taken a quarantine space from one of the 35,000 stranded Australians. Don't grandstand and make jokes about breaking quarantine. If you don't want to abide by Australia's Covid rules then don't travel there," another said.
"As a citizen of Australia unable to return due to the wait list and prohibitive cost of flights I'm somewhat bemused at your ability to travel to Oz? I haven't seen my kids for 18 months, quite pissed about this tbh…" another wrote.
Caitlyn Jenner faced backlash for entering Australia. Photo / AP
Concerning support
But while some were clearly angry, many were in support of Hopkin's controversial views, claiming "Aussies are showing zero bloody fight".
"Really shocking with what's going on in Australia," one said.
"That's mad! Taken to your room by the forces and have no key," another wrote.
While one said, "I love Australia but I just can't see the point in effectively doing a two-week prison sentence to travel. The world has gone bonkers."
Celebrity arrivals 'slap in the face'
Reality TV star Caitlyn Jenner also faced backlash for entering Australia on Friday, believed to also be to take part in the Channel 7 series Celebrity Big Brother.
A group representing Australians stranded abroad has said the fact a celebrity can fly in while others struggle to is a "slap in the face".
It's unclear whether Hopkins or Jenner have taken the spot of any Australian, as many celebrities entering Australia have organised their own quarantine at their own expense.
Celebrity Big Brother will be filmed at Sydney Olympic Park, close to NSW's largest vaccination hub.
