Plus-size window mannequin 'fat-shamed and laughed at'

Debbie Shelley said she was "astounded" when people started jeering, pointing and shouting abuse at the size 32 dummy

A plus-size mannequin in a bridal shop window is being fat-shamed and laughed at by passers-by, the owner has said.

Debbie Shelley, who owns Somerset Bridal, said she was "astounded" when people started jeering, pointing and shouting abuse at the size 32 dummy.

She said: "We can hear what they're saying as they walk past and some of it's very cruel and not nice at all."

In a bid to stop people heckling, she has put a sign up in the window "asking people to think before being rude".

The plus-size mannequin, nicknamed Fuschia, was put on display in "her own window" in a wedding dress shop in Minehead in Somerset in March.

Since then, Ms Shelley said Fuschia had been "heckled, laughed at, jeered at and fat-shamed" and it had been "horrible".

Ms Shelley said itwas really important to "represent all of our brides" and it was sad people were being so unkind

"We've had women with children laughing at the mannequin and coming up to the window and saying 'don't ever get that fat love, because no one's ever going to want to marry you are they?'", she said.

"That's been the most hurtful part for me."

She said the shop caters for "all brides of all sizes" and it was really important to "represent all of our brides".

"It's easy to get smaller mannequins but not so easy to get anything over a size 20 and half of our brides are over a size 20," she said.

"It's my brides I feel for, they can hear it all going on outside.

"Try falling in love with your dream dress when there are hecklers outside being rude to Fuchsia."

When the comments started getting "loud and obnoxious", the owner put a poster in the window

Recently, when the comments started getting really "loud and obnoxious", Ms Shelley decided to put a poster in the window saying "don't laugh at my mannequin".

"I just want people to think twice about why they've just said as they're walking past," she said.

"I'm hoping that it's having some effect in changing people's attitude."