A mother broke down in tears on today’s This Morning when the programme showed a video of her daughter being attacked by a bully.
Mum-of-four Claire Walton appeared on the show alongside 13-year-old Hollie, to speak about the pupil’s recent ordeal at her school in Rhyl, North Wales.
After a bullying campaign against the young girl, she was ambushed and beaten up, with the whole incident being FILMED by one of the bully’s friends.
But when the clip was posted on social media by Hollie’s assailant, Claire decided to give the bully a taste of her own medicine by making it viral so that everyone could see what happened.
Hollie revealed on the programme that she’d been friends with her tormentor before the pair fell out over a minor disagreement.
She told presenters Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby that she was then subjected to daily bullying at the Blessed Edward Jones High School, revealing how her former pal “put sparklers in my hair and tripped me up in the hallway”.
But things got even worse for the teenager when she was physically assaulted as she left the premises one day.
Anticipating that the attack was going to happen, Hollie had asked her teachers if she could leave school early. But as she didn’t tell them the reason why, her request was turned down.
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What happened next was captured by a friend of the bully’s on her mobile phone – Hollie was grabbed and thrown around by her hair, and it was only thanks to the intervention of a passer-by that the attack wasn’t even worse.
The video was later circulated on Snapchat and other social sites, much to the horror of Claire.
And as the clip was shown to viewers on This Morning, it all became too much for Hollie’s mum, who broke down in tears.
“I’m proud of the way Hollie’s dealt with it, because she’s held her head up high,” she told the hosts.
Luckily, Holly Willoughby was on hand with tissues for the heartbroken brunette.
Viewers were fuming at Hollie’s story, with one tweeting: “What a PATHETIC little bully, to do that to Hollie. So disgusting. Someone is looking to drag up the bully by her hair now”
“Just despicable why people feel they need to bully people. Feel sorry for holly she looks like a lovely girl,” said another.
And a third added: “Obvious really. Know its a cliche but that bully is jealous. This girl on #ThisMorning is BEAUTIFUL.”
After Claire went viral with the video, school governors expressed their disappointment over the incident.
In a statement, they said: “As a Catholic community, Blessed Edward Jones High School was saddened to witness the behaviour of one of our family last Friday.
“[We] would like to assure all pupils, parents and carers that we take such incidents very seriously.
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“We will continue to work tirelessly to provide a safe and secure school, and set high standards in terms of behaviour towards each other, even at times of difficulty.”
North Wales Police also issued a statement saying they are investigating the incident and appealing for witnesses.