The father of the bride-to-be who was sent a stinging email from her future mother-in-law today hit back – branding her ”MISS FANCY PANTS”.
Groom-to-be Freddy Bourne’s step-mum Carolyn, 60, sparked outrage when she emailed future daughter-in-law Heidi Withers, 29, and criticised her manners.
The email slammed Heidi, a PA in London, for her ”lack of grace” and branded her ”an ideal candidate for the Ladette to Lady television series”.
Stunned Heidi forwarded the email to friends and it was soon read by thousands after it went viral and appeared on websites and message boards around the world.
Heidi’s father today dubbed Carolyn ”Miss Fancy Pants” and said: ”I think she has her head stuck so far up her own arse she doesn’t know whether to speak or fart.”
Speaking from his home in Ledbury, Herefordshire, which is adorned with the family’s own coat of arms, Alan Withers, 64, said: ”I was surprised when I read Carolyn’s email to Heidi.
”Heidi was very upset and the two of them obviously don’t see eye to eye. I met Carolyn and her husband Edward for dinner at a pub in London last year.
”Edward was a jovial chap but Carolyn was quite snotty. She had a look about her which made us think she thought she was better than us.
”Ever since that meeting we call her ‘Miss Fancy Pants’. I think she has her head stuck so far up her own arse she doesn’t know whether to speak or fart.
”It’s very sad what has happened but it’s pointless us getting involved.
”I don’t care if she apologises. You can’t take back what has been said once it’s said.
”Of course at the wedding we will shake hands and toast Heidi and Freddie.”
Acid-tongued Carolyn, a specialist flower breeder in Dawlish, Devon, sent the vitriolic email to Heidi THREE times in one day six weeks ago.
Alan said: ”Heidi was sent the email three times in one day. It was sent twice to her personal email and once to her work email.
”The email was very clearly intended to be sent. There was no mistake about what Carolyn was trying to do.
”Carolyn received it at work and forwarded it to me because it had things in it about my wife and I.
”She said to me, ‘What do you think Dad? Should I respond?’
”I told her the best thing to do was not respond to it at all and take the moral high ground.
”A couple of weeks later she and Freddie agreed to jointly respond to her email. I looked at the response once and put it in a drawer.
”I have no desire to meet Carolyn or Edward again before or after the wedding, they don’t know us and we don’t know them.”
In the email, Carolyn lambasts Heidi and fiancé Freddie’s decision to get married in church and hold the reception in a castle, branding it ”brash, celebrity style behaviour”.
But Alan responded: ”The reason we have been unable to contribute as much money was because we both lost our jobs. I don’t Carolyn was aware of that when she sent the email.
”To be frank, where and how Heidi and Freddie get married is no concern of Carolyn’s. We just hope they have a wonderful day and are happy together.”
Alan and wife Sylvia, 60, both ran an agency supplying nurses to care homes before the company which owned the firm made them redundant in January.
He added: ”Sylvia worked in the office and I helped. We were unceremoniously got rid of without warning in January and have been searching for jobs ever since.
”Sylvia is now a matron in a care home and I am still looking for work.”
The couple have another daughter, September, nicknamed ‘Seppy’, 23, who works for a magazine in London.
Carolyn Bourne, speaking from her home in Dawlish, Devon, said: ”I have nothing to say”.
Carolyn Bourne is a very common woman Her famiy has called her a low class snob.
It is obvious that there is a severe lack of communication between Carolyn Bourne and her beloved Freddie. She would have had better manners herself to have spoken to him about her concerns and NOT e-mailed her future daughter-in-law on these matters, by doing this unfortunately she has lowered herself. Freddie obviously knows by now about his mother’s expectations and strictly high standards but simply landed his fiancee into this situation without warning. I do hope one day that another member of the Bourne family falls for a distant Royal family member and quickly find out that their own family’s manners and ‘class’ just don’t compare and that they wouldn’t be good enough or accepted either. Every family have ‘standards’ everyone is different, we just have to accept each person as they are and not be judgmental. This is just a case of sheer bitterness on Carolyn Bourne’s behalf tinged with jealousy of loosing Freddie, I don’t think anyone would be good enough for poor old Freddie, but she’s bound to loose him if she continues to treat Heidi this way. My advice to the future Mr & Mrs Bourne is ….. EMIGRATE! All the very best to you both.
Freddie Bourne is not even the natural child of Carolyn Bourne, so I don’t think he’s got anything to lose by distancing himself.
Meanwhile, I hear the sound of Carolyn Bourne’s Will being rewritten, specifically to exclude certain parties!
Heidi Withers family is doing a great job showing where she got her lack of manners with their own rude comments. Mrs. Bourne’s comments basically revolved along the lines of “be polite and considerate of others, express gratitude and please keep your expectations in line when expecting others to pay for things for you”. Good for her! Shame on the Withers family for being so rude and tacky.
Well what can you say, a woman who assumes she has the best manners and status shows that she as the father said a “arse”, what a jerk, she has just embarrassed her entire family. Possibly it is her who needs to show manners, how you treat a guest. I am sure the couple will be happy and the rude stepmum is sorry she opened her mouth. I am guessing her friends bums are in a pinch. I like her name Ms Fancy Pants, L@L Good for her dad to shoot back a comment, can you imagine some of the tension at that wedding…..I wouldn’t speak to her ever…..
Dear Glynjones80 – As Southmedhorse noted properly, Carolyn is Freddie’s STEP-mom. Why would he need to have any type of regular communication with his father’s wife? Since Carolyn married into Freddie’s family, she has no right to comment on his future wife.
And to EF McAdams – it’s the Bourne family (Carolyn & Edward) who are being so rude and tacky. The Withers family is staying above the fray.
Please read the entire article BEFORE posting your own rude and tacky comments!