Belle Gibson gives first TV interview since being exposed
Disgraced blogger Belle Gibson has fronted the cameras for the first time since admitting she lied about having terminal brain cancer while promoting her wellness app and book The Whole Pantry.
In a new television interview Gibson admits: “I have lost everything.”
Ms Gibson appeared to show little remorse while speaking with journalist Tara Brown: “I’m not trying to get away with anything.
"I’ve been really transparent.”
In April, Gibson broke her silence and admitted in the Australian Women's Weekly that she had never had cancer. The 23-year-old explained that she found it difficult to distinguish between reality and fantasy.
Ms Gibson’s world first began to unravel in March, when the Australian newspaper published an article casting doubt on her cancer claims.
While Ms Gibson claimed she suffered from multiple cancers, the paper quoted her as saying she had a "misdiagnosis".
The success of Gibson's recipe book, The Whole Pantry, and her health and wellness Instagram blog, Healing Belle, which had almost 200,000 followers, was largely driven by her 'inspirational' cancer survival story.
She claimed she had survived terminal brain cancer and various other life-threatening cancers over the years by abandoning conventional treatments and opting for natural health and wellness remedies.
But cracks started to appear in her story when it was revealed that $300,000 raised by her app and promised to cancer charities was never donated.
The controversy gathered pace quickly, with a book deal with Penguin evaporating and Apple removing her product from its App Store. Those who had purchased her products demanded their money back.
Gibson stopped short of telling the Weekly exactly why she had fabricated the story, leading it to speculate she may live with Munchausen’s syndrome.
But while the fallen wellness guru says she does not expect forgiveness for the episode, the repercussions have been harsh.
She has been forced to return her car and move out of her beachside home, but her partner Clive Rothchild appears to have been more forgiving.
“He’s been very stern, along the lines of, “I just want you to acknowledge where you’ve f---ed up and try not to smooth over that”,” Gibson said.
She also revealed the public backlash from the episode had been so harsh it forced her into hiding.
She was reportedly not paid for her interview.
Before Ms Gibson was rumbled she appeared on television shows promoting her app and book.
Here is her interview on Sunrise months before her fall from grace.
