Nigella winning the PR battle with Saatchi as poll shows public opinion clearly on her side
Nigella Lawson is trouncing her former husband Charles Saatchi in the 'court of public opinion', according to a specially commissioned poll by The Sunday Times.
The YouGov poll, carried out late last week and published by the paper today, shows that 39 per cent of the public have more sympathy for her than for Saatchi. Just 2 per cent are on his side.
The findings follow TV chef Lawson's appearance in court last week, where she gave evidence in the trial of her two former assistants accused of fraud.
When she took to the stand, Lawson admitted that she had taken cocaine but denied she was an addict.
But the drug revelations have not seriously harmed her public image, according to the pollsters. In fact 10 per cent of those polled by YouGov said their perception of Lawson has now improved.
Around two thirds said the details from the London courtroom make no difference to their opinion of her and only 20 per cent thought less of her.
The survey results echo a comment piece written last week by The Drum blogger Mark Lowe, who expressed the view that Lawson's reputation was unlikely to be permanently tarnished by the courtroom accusations.
The Sunday Times explains how Saatchi has no formal PR advice and no lawyer. In sharp contrast, Lawson's 'Team Cupcake' includes her brother the Sunday Times columnist Dominic Lawson, defamation and libel specialists from the legal firm Schillings and her PR adviser of 15 years, Mark Hutchinson.