After being suspended from driving, actress Helen Flanagan posted a mysterious quote on Instagram.
The former Corrie star, 34, had claimed a suspension would cause her “exceptional hardship” but magistrates imposed the six-month ban, and fined the actress on Friday.
Flanagan claimed that Robbie Talbot was driving her Audi when it was found speeding twice across Merseyside in June of last year, but she was charged with two counts of providing false information.
The mother of three shared a post from podcast host Bryony Gordon on Instagram after her hearing at Wirral Magistrates’ Court on Friday. As the waves slammed against the shoreline, it captured a picturesque view of the sunset beach landscape. The words emblazoned on the image read: “This too shall pass”. Adding: “But what the f***”?
The magistrates were unsatisfied that Flanagan, who already had six points on her license, would face significant hardship as a result of her ban. Despite the actress’s claim that she is “struggling” financially and cannot afford taxis to take her youngest son Charlie without a car,
Speaking in court, Flanagan said: “My job really is being a mum at home. Their dad works away. I’m currently having a lot of trouble making money right now. Although my income on social media is somewhat variable, it does fluctuate.
I believe there might be a perception that I could afford a driver, but that’s not really the case. About all that is left over in my account is basically all that money, enough to pay off my taxes and my VAT.
She claimed the remote location of her home in Bolton, Greater Manchester, meant she would” really struggle without a car”. When asked, she said an Uber to the nursery, for instance, cost about £10.
Flanagan, who played Rosie Webster in Corrie initially from 2000 to 2012, added:” If I was doing that all the time it would be very, very expensive for me. “
She claimed she would need to get in touch with her accountant to find out how much money she made last year, but that she did so “about 70”.
She claimed she needed the car to transport her two older children to after-school activities, to see her therapist in Birmingham, and to meet her ex-partner, football player Scott Sinclair, at a service station in Birmingham while the kids stayed with him.
Asked if she had spoken to Sinclair about whether other arrangements could be made when he saw their children, Flanagan said:” No, I haven’t. I’ve got a very difficult relationship with my ex-partner. It’s very, very draining. The actress claimed to have ADHD and anxiety.
She stated, “I have terrible OCD and struggle with anxiety.” My ADHD has a really, really big impact on my life overall, which is why I have to deal with it.
Flanagan, also a model, said she had told Mr Talbot, who sat at the back of court for the hearing, he needed to reply to police when she had received the speeding fines.
She said, “I very stupidly and naively thought it was acceptable for my boyfriend to respond to the police that it wasn’t me that he was driving.”
If Flanagan’s car was to be banned, the magistrates’ bench chairman, David Holley, inquired about whether Mr. Talbot would be able to drive her car. If my boyfriend drove my car after I took that away, she said, “I would feel really, really angry.” I don’t think that would sit well with me. “
Patrick Boyers, defending, said:” She is a single mother of three children and she is doing her best. I’d like to show you how social media influencer branding works. I would encourage you to examine this case from the perspective of the cold, hard facts of the person in front of you, and I would encourage you to discover that extraordinary hardship is a real possibility.
Flanagan nodded when she was sentenced and offered to pay the fine in £1, 000 monthly instalments. For each offence, she received six penalty points.
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