Captialising on her rising YouTube popularity, and seeing a market to sell some merch, Elle made her first foray in to the mountain of fast fashion Influencer loungewear collections selling clothing to her Angle Fan Base with plain hoodys that had her signature "You Do You Boo" catchphrase on in 2018.
A year later, Angelle Collection was launched. It has mainly compromised of oversized Loungewear sets in 50 Shades of Beige (or "Colourways" as they started calling them) Other collections have been released at various times since 2019.
Elle and Connor have claimed all along the process that after investing their own money into starting the brand, they don't take a profit from the sales or the collections and anything they earn goes back into investing the company further. Not everyone is convinced of this fact, but it could be true.
An Angelle Collection launch event happened in London in 2019, which seemed to be quite successful. In November 2021 the "Fuse" Collection was celebrated with a weekend event in a pop up shop in London.
Feedback on item quality was always mixed. The most common complaint time again was the material going bobbly after only one wash, or seams coming apart quickly. Have a look for the Trustpilot pilot reviews yourself, or inbetween the arse licking comments on Angelle's IG Page (though most negative feedback there is normally swiftly hidden...). The lucky recipient of this gifted set must've been told to say this in a story post after a deluge of "bobbly crotch" complaints:
But then things started to fall apart with the online launch before Christmas and it became clear the team in charge of processing the orders were either overwhelmed or Elle and Connor weren't putting in the proper hard work behind the scenes they claimed to be doing - between the Fuse launch and the fact that Connor had himself released his first (and probably last....) collection for his own clothing brand SWFT recently, complaints and negative reviews started to roll in pretty quickly on the IG comments and on Trustpilot.
They had a team of people working for them, but it became apparent after the Twitter Scandal that some staff had jumped ship. Angelle and the SWFT Instagram Pages also lost a lot of followers between them.
Just a small selection of customer complaints from Insta and Trustpilot:
The Trustpilot Reviews have been a constant source of interest, as after every couple of negative reviews where the average satisfaction rating goes down, an amazing 5 star review is posted quite by someone that sounds quite suspicious.
In the Boxing Day sales £50 hoodies were being sold for £16. All those boyfriends in the back that were pestered for Angelle Merch must've been fuming just after Christmas.
Never mind Lads, you could've waited just a couple of months more to pick up a decent bargain at your local Oxfam. Once the Twitter Scandal erupted loads of Angelle Collection items suddenly appeared on eBay and other places.
One of the models of Angelle Collection also posted these messages after the Tweets were revealed:
In March 2022 Angelle Collection sent a message to those on the mailing list (see the message on the Timeline on Page 3) and a small "Self Worth" hoodie range was quietly launched without much fanfare to test the waters.
As of Elle's official return to Instagram at the end of May, no mention has been made yet of the future of Angelle, though some people think she will rebrand or evolve the Angelle business into more of well-being brand. She still has an audience to sell too, but not many other self respecting teens or young adults outside of the Angle Bubble will be aware of the brand as these days Influencer loungewear collections are ten a penny.
SWFT/Swift Apparel
According to Companies House, Swift Apparel was set up a couple of years ago but nothing really happened with it apart from Elle mentioning in one early Vlog that he was thinking of starting his own gym wear/loungwear business.
Fast forward to 2021, and Connor announces that he's releasing his own loungwear company for men. Great! Another prison-inspired loungwear range, this time in 50 Shades of Black and Grey. This move appears to be in a strange conflict of interest though, as Connor was co-owner of Angelle Collection that were also releasing their first collection for Men and Women called "Fuse" in the same timeframe too.
Shortly after the launch, customers were already complaining on the SWFT IG page that their orders were wrong, missing and were struggling to get a response from the Customer Service team. First impressions for SWFT were not looking good. It took days for any customers to be responded to or at least acknowledged, Connor seemingly stepped back from any managerial role or responsibility for the failings of his own brand. We don't know if his team were the same team running the behind the scenes for Angelle. Literally no effort was put into publically to apologise to any customers who had problems with their orders.
Good Luck with that one Conny Hilfiger....
(Posted November 2021)
Yep. He never fails to disappoint....
Other Controversial moments & Dealing with criticism
White Moose Saga
The first controversy that bought Elle to prominence, and even to this day she is still known as the Influencer who was publically outed and roasted for requesting a free hotel stay.
Elle contacted the White Moose Cafe (a Hotel in Ireland) to ask if they would like to "collaborate" by giving her and Connor a free stay over Valentines Day weekend in exchange for free publicity via her Vlog. Unfortunately, she messed with the wrong person. The owner (Paul, who already had previous for courting publicity with being anti-influencer and anti-vegans) publically posted her email and his savage response which went viral. Elle even released a video about it (painting herself as the victim) but, to be fair Paul had a fair point!
Whenever Elle receives criticism she loves to play the victim card. On the rare occasion she has to defend something (like the negative response and attention the White Moose Cafe saga bought her way) She feels it's nothing to do with people expressing an opinion at how entitled she is, but it's more of a jealous attack on her humble job of being a young 22 year old "Girl" reaching out to "collaborate" on free hotel stays on one of the most lucrative weekends of the year.
You were old enough to request a free stay. You are therefore old enough to deal with the fallout and consequences and hold your hands up and say "I misjudged that, sorry for coming across the way I did. I will learn and do better".
6.5k Giveaway - Feb 2021
Elle jumped on the bandwagon of a novel way to gain more followers quickly by participating in a giveaway. A Tattler quickly pointed out that Influencers can deduct what they spend on giveaway prizes off their tax bill. Sneaky.
Again, considering the social economic climate at the time - it all seemed a bit tone deaf and tasteless. Who wants to win 6.5k of designer goods and electronics, when they'd rather have quicker access to cash or vouchers to help with their heating or shopping bills. However, the strangest part was the eventual winner - out of the thousands that would have entered, what were the chances of a 19 year old girl from the UK winning? It gets stranger still, as Elle shared the name of the winner (not being shared on here for Doxxing rules) but the persons account, bio, generic picture, followers and following numbers looked similar to those of a Bot account. Not saying it definitely was, but the whole thing seemed very suspicious.
Dealing With Criticism
Connor and Elle are such staunch supporters of the movement to ban online bullying that they secretly went undercover a decade ago to Tweet some terrible things, and then revisted their old Social Media accounts on New Year's Eve 2021. A bit like one of those time capsules that Blue Peter buried, that turns out to be full of hateful messages about Polish people, Fat People, the Pizza for breakfast eating youths of America and any homosexuals that might end up in Hufflepuff thanks to the Sorting Hat. They did not like what they found and immediately released a public statement on IG stories to highlight to everyone that these were not their own personal views from 10 years ago at all.
Elle vs Trolls and Tattle
Yep. Elle reads Tattle. We all know she reads Tattle. We know that she knows that we know she reads Tattle. She's even directly referenced Tattle in an IG story around 2019. The result? A home goal, as it only directed her followers to Tattle to see what it was about.
Elle and Connor do not like Tattle because they cannot delete or moderate comments like they can do on their own social media channels.
Also, not all people that join the Elle Tattle thread are haters, and not all people that post negative comments on their public social media pages or DM them come from Tattle. Elle and Connor have annoyed and effected enough people over the years to have people message them constructive criticism or whatever else they feel the need to message them because that's just how the Internet is.
Oh the irony of online abuse.... when only a few years earlier she had Tweeted that she hoped her school bus driver had a crash, how Jedward spoke with "Gayboy" accents and how much she hated Polish people.
Winter 2021 Elle was gifted a Christmas Lights display from Lights 4 Fun. It was put up early November (confusing and amusing all local residents that did and didn't know who she was) But she didn't bank on the locals snapping a photo and uploading online before she had a chance to create her own outdoor photoshoot and film content for the Vlog for an exclusive reveal. Here's a story from a local Tattler:
Tattle exists because Social Media Exists. Elle Darby's Tattle Thread exists because she has become a very popular Influencer and Vlogger. But with that amount of influence and power must come responsibilities to the feelings and self worth of the target audience you are trying to 'Influence'.
Tattlers are not Trolls. We are people that have a right to express our opinions on a forum that often has an opposing view on the things Influencer Culture stands for. So why be that narcissistic to actively seek out your own Tattle thread in the first place?
You should be honoured EDL - your thread is one of the funniest & popular threads on Tattle. Thank you for the years of hilarious material and iconic moments (My SON, Tiny Crack, One Cup Con) camel toe outfits, the impromptu urban photoshoots in the piss stained car park.
Influencers do not like being held accountable for any unethical, sneaky or underhand things they do in order to carrying on living their privileged and carefully curated online lives. They thrive on money through sponsored posts, sponsored content and Adsense income from YouTube Views. They do not like being criticised when they are used to limiting comments to only those that follow them telling them how amazing and inspirational they are. They do not like the likes of Tattle that can see through this very manipulative and damaging industry.
They'd much rather live their lives in ignorant bliss, living in an echo chamber of positive comments from followers - the irony being that whenever a "negative" comment slips through thay might be something in the real world that would be passed off as constructive criticism, the fans will pile on with "Be Kind/Don't be a Troll".
No No. Don't go for a non-urgent Hair Transplant in the middle of a Pandemic, then not address the criticism for putting your unborn child or yourselves at risk and then block a long term follower who asks why you did that when they weren't allowed to go to their Nan's funeral due to the Covid restrictions at the time. Don't be a Dick.
There have been suspicious accounts that have appeared, commented something in favour of Elle, and then the account has been closed again over the years. This post appeared in 2022 just after Elle was spotted at the Corsham 10k Run supporting Connor. A picture of her was uploaded (see timeline on Page 3) and shortly after this a post raised eyebrows as a lot of the terminology and words were very similar to the way Elle speaks. The poster only had notable activity on the Elle thread, and the James & Carys thread. Had Elle been bold enough to anonymously defend herself on Tattle? It wouldn't be the first time an Influencer has commented on their own thread under their own name or a fake name....
She probably also doesn't like the fact that the website Social Blade exists. It gives info on follower stats for social media users. A very clever Tattler noted that Elle treats herself to 1k Followers every few weeks.
Elle clearly can't make a distinction between constructive criticism and trolling. She has previous for blocking followers that have given her advice in good faith - from warning about the dangers of using cot bumpers, to suggesting a trigger warning before posting stories of her babies heartbeat (more on that lower down in the 'Pregnancy' section). Early in 2021 she posted a few stories about being "bullied" .... now this isn't to dismiss the fact that yes, she probably does recieve unpleasant DM's alongside other messages she deems to be negative, but are only trying to guide her on how to not offend sections of her following. But her IG story response was condescending and patronising, telling people to "go for a long walk" rather than follow or contact accounts they didn't like. Her social media bubble was getting more "Toxic Energy" and becoming a negative space because more and more people were starting to call her out for her actions. Simple as.
Connor vs Trolls and Tattle
(Picture courtesy of Diagnosis123)
Not only has Elle posted a rant about online abuse, Connor (he of ex-bin dust collector fame...) has also spoken out about online abuse. Yes, anonymous online abuse is not pleasant. But Elle and Connor very often confuse criticism for bullying. Again, Tattlers are not Trolls. The Moderators and Admins are very fair and will jump into a thread to remind users of the rules if things get too out of hand.
Again, Elle and Connor do not like Tattle because they cannot delete or moderate comments like they can do on their own social media channels.
And also again, as already stated above: not all people that join the Elle Tattle thread are haters, and not all people that post negative comments on their public social media pages or DM them come from Tattle. Elle and Connor have annoyed and effected enough people over the years to have people message them constructive criticism or whatever else they feel the need to message them because that's just how the Internet is.
Connor’s Hair Transplant & Their inability to admit they broke Lockdown Rules
On January 13th 2021 in the middle of a "Stay At Home" National Lockdown, Connor posts a cryptic story about them going away for a few days, as they posted about dropping the dogs off at their usual place (Bath Country Pets and Spa) for another freebie stay in exchange for publicity, they always have to post & tag the company.
This little impromptu trip away for a few days raises many eyebrows as at this point the UK is in the middle of it's second Lockdown. The Vaccine rollout is at its early stages and only being distributed to NHS Staff, Key Workers and the elderly. The country and the World were still very much struggling to live with COVID 19, the surge in cases towards Christmas and into the New Year was getting higher again due to the Winter Flu season, social distancing was still in force and different parts of the UK were set into different Level Tiers depending on the severity of the Covid case numbers in their area, to help reduce spread by staying local and not making any unnecessary trips to help keep the spread under control, the R Rate stable/low and not to put any extra pressure on the NHS or its staff over Christmas and The New Year. Many people spent Christmas alone and without their families. Sadly, alongside people losing their lives to COVID, the impact of a lot of other medical treatment, scans etc being delayed for other patients including Cancer sufferers was also very tragic and upsetting. Alongside the fact that due to social distancing rules, many people hadn't been allowed to attended funeral services to say goodbye to their loved ones.
Connor had been gifted a Hair Transplant. Because of course, the best time to get a hair transplant is in the middle of a global Pandemic. A non-urgent cosmetic procedure in the middle of one of the bleakest Winters on record. This did not pass the Vibe Check with anyone (except quite a few Angles that came to their defence in their IG comments section. A couple of them also revealed themselves to be staunch Covid Deniers and Anti Vaxxers, which surprised nobody. At one point due to the backlash Connor's Mum liked posts in defence of Connor and one of his friends also jumped in to his defence). (And just randomly putting it out there, but steroids can also cause hair thinning...)
And then there was this hilarious exchange with an IG user that was surely on a wind-up, but was entertaining nonetheless "One day you might need hair too" ....
(Yes. Of Course. Connor had been housebound for most of the Pandemic apart from - when travel restrictions were and weren't so relaxed - jetting off on holiday to Ibiza and France. Driving to Cardiff to see James & Carys, trip to London at Christmas, shopping trips, pub lunches, going to the gym, viewing wedding venues, organising and hiring a venue, make up artist and camera crew for the proposal, mixed in doors in other peoples houses around Christmas....)
Surely his hairline could wait a few months until a time it would seem less selfish to drive halfway across the country for the sake of vanity and a free cosmetic procedure? Elle had just announced her pregnancy too, so was also putting herself at risk - a concern that was highlighted more at that moment due to popular influencer Grace Victory being put into a induced coma due to contracting Coronavirus whilst being heavily pregnant. Thankfully her and her baby pulled through.
Some comments from January 2021 that show the disbelief of how selfish and unnecessary this was:
The whole episode became even more suspect when, once realising they were starting to get a bit of negative feedback for being away from home for a few days, they started posting stories on their IG accounts to make it look as if they were already back home or were home all the time. IG stories from footage shot inside their house with an emoji/sticker saying "Friday" when they were clearly still away at this point. They were clearly trying to do some low key sneaky damage control to pretend they were at home right then when they actually weren't.
Elle & Connor came under fire for this and the controversial story did carry some traction around some low key news sites and was also discussed on a Podcast. They and their management Gleam were also criticised for not addressing the situation at all or acknowledging or apologising for their tone deaf lack of judgement. Yet when Elle featured the Hair Transplant in her next Vlog, she glossed over the face that what they'd done was pretty tone deaf and carried on as if everyone wanted to hear about how wonderful Connor's emotional hairline journey had been.
Yet again, not being able to deal with the criticism or address that maybe in retrospect it was the wrong thing to do, Elle went on a blocking spree and blocked lots of people that were (quite rightly) voicing their concern and disbelief as to why they thought they could post about undertaking non-essential travel during a Pandemic. Even blocking people that had commented and liked posts criticising them on Connor’s IG comments section and not her own.
Cheating Rumours
*DISCLAIMER* Solid proof of any sort when it comes to Connor allegedly cheating on Elle has never fully come to light from their camp or anyone that that’s ever commented on Tattle, Tik Tok or Facebook that does or doesn’t know them personally. However, Connor’s sketchy behaviour has been called into question many times over the years.
It’s been made obvious that Connor has followed many models on IG in the past. Although he once claimed to be Angelle Collection’s preferred in-house photographer on collection shoots, all these models he’s following can’t just be to see if they’d look good in an overpriced and oversized XS fluffy hoody and not much else.
The general feeling was that Connor was a bit of a Lad, and no doubt enjoyed a cheeky flirt on a night out without Elle. But he was filmed more than once being very secretive with his phone on her vlogs.
It’s also been noted that Connor has followed some IG content that surely Elle (or any partner that deserves respect in a long term relationship) wouldn’t be happy him following. It’s been documented on Tattle (in 2021 when Elle was pregnant) via Screenshots, that he’s followed multiple girls at once, liked photos and then him or Elle have read comments on Tattle about him following these models, clearly had words, and then he’s unfollowed them again.
It's hard to completely sort out one rumour from another, but here's a collection of things that have appeared on Tattle and elsewhere over the last couple of years that has been pieced together...
Posted 2020:
From a local Tattler that always brings spot on information:
December 2022
A Tattler joins to say a friend of hers had met Connor on a night out recently and they had been exchanging messages. Not a lot of solid proof comes, but a story of what happened and also a screenshot of his WhatsApp profile is shared. The number was blurred out except the last 3 digits that were left visible. Confirmation that this was definitely his number came when a quick visit to his Personal Trainer Business page on Facebook showed his full contact number with the exact same last 3 digits one day during the early stages of the Twitter Shitstorm kicking off. Within minutes of this being mentioned on the Thread, someone had gone in to Connor’s Facebook business page and deleted off the number. Elle has eyes everywhere.
What's this though Hun? 36 Media/Links/Docs have been shared between the two. Interesting. x
January 2022
These messages appear on Tik Tok when videos are uploaded in relation to the Tweet story gaining traction.
Also January 2022
This message is posted on Facebook under one of the articles that appears on the local newspaper page regarding the Twitter scandal.
March
If further proof was needed that the mobile number was indeed Connor’s came when a fellow Tattler posted this message:
March/April
The infamous "OliviaBOlivia" Saga. (Scroll down to the bottom of the page for the glossary where all is explained about the tale of Olivia there....) Long story short though: a girl claimed to have has an on/off thing with Con for years, her receipts of proof were weak, but her story had some convincing elements to it.
Since being outed for having multiple Tattle accounts, she's never been seen again (though suspicions have been raised since she's reappeared under another new name but is keeping quiet about it....)
Conclusion: The Jury's out. No hard evidence. But then, there's no smoke without fire. Elle knows what a lot of people think about her relationship, but will continue to push the "Couple Goals" narrative, because that's their selling point as an online couple.
General Connor Douchbaggery
Sometimes Connor’s ineptness at general social media interaction can range between amusing and annoying. Considering the Angles pay his bills, he hasn't been gifted with the brain cells to help beyond telling someone to "Google It" when as a qualified PT himself, holds Q&A sessions on IG and is asked advice about things relating to health and fitness.
Classic Con:
Imparting sage advice (from someone who's given up his job to sponge off his girlfriend the last few years):
That time in Summer 2020 when foreign travel was opening up again but severely restricted to certain destinations only. When half the Country was fatigued by the all consuming effects of Covid, Job Losses, the NHS on it's arse and staffing stretched to the limit. Con continued to not read the room at all:
Like Elle and her talent for singing, Connor’s talent for acting also knows no beginning. He did an IG advert for Kelloggs Cereal, and without context you'd be forgiven for assuming he'd uploaded a story of him randomly bending over in pain and Sharting himself in the kitchen.
The show is called WandaVision you Bell End.
And a little throwback to the early days of YouTube, on their bodybuilding journey. Nice tan Con, is that bin dust or 3 coats of Ronseal?
Pregnancy Announcement - New Year 2021
An announcement was teased earlier in the day, which lead some people to guess that maybe Con was announcing that had got himself a proper job at last. But alas! Even in a post announcing their newest Money Making Content Creator was on their way, Ellenor Jane still couldn't put a pair of trousers on. Zoe Suggs and Mrs Hinch also announced their pregnancies at the same time, but with trousers on.
As if she hadnt made it obvious enough with the amount of thirsty hints they'd dropped in the lead up to Christmas 2020, Elle announced on NYD that she was indeed expecting the Second Coming. A heartwarming photoshoot of them both cradling her 20 week 8 week bump trapped wind. The Angles went insane, yet Twitter provided some good LOL moments:
Triggering Pregnancy Content
From the start, Elle found ways to patronize and offend. The trend to describe trying for a baby as 'TTC' (Trying to Conceive) is controversial when used in the context of trying to get pregnant and then getting pregnant within the 1st few months. The term TTC or "TTC Journey" is for couples (or people going it alone) trying for a baby for a long period time - either trying to conceive naturally or via the IVF process. It can be a long, hard, tough and heartbreaking process. Frenemy Carys had already used the term a few months previous, so Elle had to jump on the bandwagon to say her epic TTC journey lasted a long 2 months.
From here on in, every single video was about her being pregnant. Pregnancy became her one and only personality trait. Congrats Elle, but maybe dial it back a bit for those followers that aren't pregnant and can't relate, those that aren't interested in pregnancy content being shoved down their throat or those that have recently suffered baby loss or are on their own long TTC journey themselves.
She shared an Affiliate link for Ovulation Tests for those who were 'Serious' about their TTC journey. Yep, she really did say that:
She quite rightly faced criticism for her insensitivity:
8 Ad breaks in a 38 minute video? Hey Elle! Show us you're monetizing every moment of your pregnancy, without telling us you're monetizing every moment of your pregnancy!? Suppose the baby's gotta start earning it's keep and paying towards your mortgage payments ASAP.
She titled her video "Telling My Boyfriend I'm Pregnant" because it's a more profitable video title than using the term "Fiancée or Partner" - either way all 3 of the big blockbuster pregnancy reveal uploads pushed up her followers and views further =
As well as the pregnancy announcement video and the "Telling my boyfriend I'm pregnant" video, she was savvy enough to film and post a video telling Katie. As sweet and wholesome as Katie is, the fact she was exploiting her vulnerable Sister for views was sad. They had only lost their Mum earlier that year, and the broadcasting of Katie’s reaction seemed a bit too personal for people outside of the family to witness. Other "Telling our Parents/Postman/Dogs/Margaret on Till 5 at Tesco" reaction videos were filmed, but shortly after reading the criticism of exploiting Katie for her reaction video, Elle suddenly decided she didn't want to upload the other videos she had. Plus she'd already been called out on breaking Lockdown rules to film the other ones already.
Later into her Pregnancy after uploading the Nursery Reveal video, many social media users contacted her about the fact she had a cot bumper. Cot Bumpers are an Aesthetic, but are also considered a danger to newborns and it's a controversial subject as to why they are still sold. Even the NHS website guidance states: "Avoid using cot bumpers in your baby's cot – they are a hazard for choking, suffocation and strangulation". People were only highlighting the dangers and their concern for her baby and giving her potentially life saving advice - she did what she always does in times of being sent helpful advice and blocked those people.
Getting fed up of the OTT pregnancy content, and for other reasons, some of her followers made their way over to Tattle to share their thoughts on why they couldn't follow or support her anymore....
Elle’s Pregnancy Journey and Saint Seven Swift’s Arrival Earthside (2021)
True to form Elle milked every single bit of pregnancy, birth and baby content that she could. We had the cringe pregnancy announcement photoshoot, the cringe announcement video, the OTT baby shower, the Full Term Cringe photoshoot, the birthing vlogs stretched out over 2 videos for maximum engagement and views, the birth announcement itself (more on that in a moment) and the drawn out process of building the hype for the baby name reveal video.
Elle had a bit of a controversial start to her pregnancy as in early 2021 when Lockdown Rules were still very tight in the UK post-Christmas. The message from the Government was to not embark on any non-essential travel, stay local, don’t put any unrequired pressure on the NHS, emergency, or breakdown services. Elle had accompanied Connor to get a (gifted) hairline transplant miles away from where they lived. Not just Tattle, but some of their followers were also shocked at how blatantly selfish they had been. It caused enough of a ripple that it was mentioned in a podcast at the time. Elle was putting herself and her baby at risk, Connor was having a non-urgent cosmetic procedure for no apparent reason.
Alongside eagle-eyed viewers spotting the “blink and you’ll miss it moments” in the Pregnancy reveal video where Elle and Connor had travelled to other family homes and had visitors to their home to reveal their news (bearing in mind this was still only 10 months into the Pandemic and the Vaccine Roll Out had barely started) tensions were still high for a lot of people that didn’t even get to see their own families over Christmas due to isolating or Lockdown Rules. The video featured a lot of tickbox cringey moments – slow mo shots, uplifting piano music, flashback scenes to her Mum, running down a hill in a white dress with her hair extensions trying to make their own run for it too.
Elle manifested any symptoms or stories to make her seem like a more relatable pregnant woman who's main job is YouTube, who's normal day to day life wasn't effected by Lockdown & Covid restrictions and begged for all the free baby stuff she could get. Yet again she was tone deaf and unable to read the room. Lots of IG stories of her feeling tired, taking it easy, competing with Carys who was much further along in pregnancy. At 4 months pregnant, she already declared she was "taking it easy" and constantly spoke as if the baby was arriving in a matter of weeks, and not the months it actually was. No doubt a few of these comments got deleted or blocked:
Elle spent her entire pregnancy eating tuna baguettes, McDonalds, Maryland Biscuits and Chocolate Digestives. She only ate healthy meals when she was contractually obliged to due whenever a Hello Fresh advert was required. She'd also down cartons of Kids Innocent Smoothies because they contained a couple of berries in them which she felt covered her 5 a day nutritional needs. Maybe the gherkin in her Big Mac counted towards that daily nutrient target too? Strangely, something in her well-balanced diet caused her to have really bad heartburn towards the end of her pregnancy, and she ended up on some “pregnancy heartburn medication” (Gaviscon to commoners).
OMG Angle, have you not got them on a weekly Amazon Prime subscription service?
She would often post about feeling so tired, being thirsty and needing to nap all the time - in contradiction to how she was a "Pregnancy Queen" and taking good care of herself by absolutely not doing anything of the sort to manifest a potential Gestational Diabetes diagnosis.
Maternity Fashion
Elle treated us to some absolute belters when it came to maternity fashion. From her maternity haul try on at about 6 weeks pregnant, to the “Unitard in the Piss Stained Car Park” look, the “Roger From American Dad” Look to the “Full Term Pregnant Loo Roll Holder” look, below are some of the favourites we were subjected too saw from our style kween. (Images coming soon)
From her Maternity outfit haul early 2021: Self proclaimed fashionista. Elle claimed being pregnant shouldn't mean you should lose your sense of style.
Midway through her pregnancy she did a Try on Haul video with Connor rating her outfits (ahhh.... the birth of the Infamous Tiny Crack moment) Elle’s photoshop skills were variable, but her video editing skills were questionable as almost every vlog she'd upload normally had a bit where they'd tediously bicker about something inane. This video was AWKS. To the point so many fans and non-fans alike made so many comments about his attitude in the video, that she ended up turning off comments for the video, sweeping it under the rug and .... you know the drill by now Angles - blocked some of the people that left negative comments.
"Up the duff, Con's had enough, why's the dog always sniffing her muff?"
Gifted Items
Not long after the giveaway stunt competition, Elle was gifted a pram from Bugaboo and proceeded to rub people's faces in it. She hustles hard for brands to notice her and gift her things, but the level of Beggy Mitchell she went too whilst pregnant was unashamedly off the scale. But to have a 6k giveaway, and then be gifted an expensive Pram and travel system when so many expectant families were struggling with the realities of Covid: job losses, food banks etc.... again it just went to highlight how badly she couldn't read a room. Ordinary folk were starting to get annoyed and frustrated at how easily Influencers were gifted expensive items, when the real heroes were the ones on the breadline, Key Workers stretched to breaking point or vulnerable women in shelters who desperately needed essential baby items.
Preggy Photoshopping
Even though she claimed she was "glowing if I do say so myself" and also claimed to be the most body confident she'd ever been since being pregnant, she continued to lie and deceive about her size and shape. She continued to photoshop and edit her images to such an extent that the difference between images posted on her IG that were from the same day as content she had filmed for YouTube were hugely different. It was just sad to see her continue this narrative of being a "Size Small/Size 10" and claiming the bump was all baby. We know it's not fair to criticise a pregnant woman for their choices, but Elle had a public platform, was boasting about how amazing pregnancy was for her - yet was continuing this damaging narrative to her followers that she looked a certain way in posted images, to how she looked unedited in YouTube footage.
Preggy Frenemy
Carys was 3 months further ahead in pregnancy than Elle (Carys was due April, Elle due July but that's ok as Elle constantly referred to herself being further along all the time), but more than once Tattlers spotted shady behaviour from Elle. Carys’s pregnancy content was similar to Elle’s, but she seemed overall more down to Earth and practical in her pregnancy content approach (even though her and James made the pregnancy their only personality trait too, and milked the content and gifted items just as hard).
She titled her announcement video the same as theirs:
Whenever Carys listed a new pregnancy symptom, Elle had to have it too (even though she was 3 months behind...)
Even though Elle had milked all the baby content she could think of early on, she held back on uploading the Nursery Tour until the exact day she knew Carys was uploading her birthing Vlog at the end of April. A transparent, calculated move to get some attention back on her. She also wore a white dress for the Nursery Reveal - surely not because in Carys’s Nursery Reveal video she said she'd had a hormonal meltdown because she'd planned to wear a specific white dress, but it wouldn't fit her, eh Elle? It didn't go unnoticed by Carys’s followers on her IG page either.
Preggy's Problematic Understanding of the Lockdown Rules
Early 2021 was still a risky time for Covid. It wouldn't be until the Summer that most things would be back to more of a "new normal" but of course, Elle yet again had her own interpretation of staying in a Bubble (her bubble was the size of the O2 it seemed....), not travelling outside of your area unless for essential work and wearing a mask correctly when vlogging in a shop.
They took a non essential trip to the beach (an hour and a half away from where they live on a beach on the Dorset Coast) one afternoon for a dog walk and impromptu braggy photo op, got called out for it on IG and Tattle and then a deflection post was quickly uploaded (wearing the same outfit) claiming they'd been sorting out the garage all afternoon for Connor’s big Garage Gym Secret Wanking Bat Cave transformation coming soon. And guess what? She blocked people for asking if she lived near a beach!
"Grandpa Joe"
Elle spent most of her 2nd Trimester bed bound many times throughout the day - it could've been down to the rubbish diet, entitled Influencer laziness, running out of content ideas and underactive thyroid. Absolutely nothing to do with keeping up with Carys who was 3 months further along, ready to drop and needing to have a little nap in the day. Guys she was soooo tired. But then miraculously, just like Charlie winning the Golden Ticket to Willy Wonkas Chocolate Digestive factory, once Lockdown restrictions were further lifted towards the Summer, Primark was back open! What a trooper, barging her way to the front of the queue on Primark's big reopening day all in the name of selflessly getting content for a haul to get up online to beat all the other YouTubers to it. All of a sudden she was up out of bed and bouncing all the way to Primark on her birthing ball she bought at 24 weeks pregnant. Again, this split opinion between people still wary of and respecting other peoples health and safety ... vs..... the Angles who were queuing to crawl up inside Elle’s Tiny Crack. On top of this, Con & Elle were still struggling to get the basics of wearing facemasks properly, bless 'em.
The Gender Reveal
Another Instahun pregnancy milestone that must be milked to the max. Elle built up the suspension for weeks. They'd already had a blood test early on that gives a high sucess rate on the correct answer of the sex of the baby. Yet they dragged out the content for the Gender Reveal. Their manager Lily was given the results and charged with ordering the right coloured confetti. But more controversy as someone filmed their reaction video, inside their house when mixing was still not allowed unless for specific reasons. The camera person also captured the reflection of a 4th person in the kitchen out of shot (possibly their manager Lily). Elle was such a Lockdown Queen, but yet again was bending the rules for her own means. Connor had also had to rush out to pick up some essentials for the photoshoot to post at the same time of the Gender Reveal video going live (blue paint to paint the word BOY on a wall) So essential.
Exploiting her baby online Sharing Her Baby Online
In two separate IG "Ask Me Anything" sessions, Elle was asked (or asked herself depending on who you really believe sends in or sets these questions up for fan engagement) about how much of her baby's life she would share online. Nobody was surprised at how much baby content she dragged out, and once Saint was born (in a feature length 2 Parter birth vlog with a million adverts strategically placed in...) He featured in almost every vlog. She even set him up a public IG account - where even some of her followers were surprised and angry about this commenting things like "This doesn't sit right with me" or the more direct "CHILDREN CAN'T CONSENT!!!"
Azaylia Cain
Brave little Azaylia's battle was highly documented online in 2021 and mainly social media stars and Influencers spread the word about her story and donating to the cause. Both LJC and Elle shared stories on Instagram about Azaylia, and out of respect it was felt generally that a post like that should be posted, and then leave it to run 24 hours before posting anything else. Not Elle. She posted a tribute to Azaylia on her stories and immediately followed up the post with a story video plug for the latest upcoming Angelle Collection drop using the music to accompany it with none other than "Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel". Not a calculated move, but an extremely tasteless, stupid move.
Baby's Birth
Baby Digestive's birth (Saint Seven Swift) was announced on Instagram in a way unique as it was baffling. A white video (literally nothing, just a white square) where you have to turn the volume up loud enough to hear the sound of newborn noises (cute) and then in the background the sound of someone finishing a piss (Connor) and flushing the toilet at the very end. Lovely.
Most Instagram followers were lead to believe their Instagram feed was broken due to the white square and lack of photo. Saint Seven Swift (Triple S) was born on the 10th July 2021, and announced on the 11th July in the hopes of trying to get some attention away from the fact that England were playing in the Euro Finals that day too. Football’s Coming Home and Mummy and Daddy’s newest Content Creator was coming home too.
Pretty Little Thing announced the birth on their Facebook page, however, contrary to popular belief, the entire population does not in fact know who Elle Darby is and most comments said “Who?”
They were spotted out and about on the 19th July 2021 on their way to register SSS by a Tattler, who managed to take a couple of sneaky photos. Well done @IceQueenMon
Strange Angles
The Angles were awaiting the birth of Jesus Swift from the moment the pregnancy was announced. This Prophetic Angle was a few days out on her prediction:
And this Angle set up an IG fan account for Saint shortly after he was born (Yes. Really.) They recieved criticism for this (Elle ended up creating Saint his own "official" IG page anyway) This Angle truly believed Saint was a kid of a celebrity, using the excuse that the likes of North West have Fan accounts. They got even creepier in their obsession by printing off loads of photos of Saint (that Elle and family had already publically uploaded to social media, so they already had these pictures anyway) and wanted to send them all as a photo book present to Elle and Connor via their management team. Bizarre Angle.
The Queen of Photoshop
Photoshop
Elle is the Queen of Photoshop and has also been known to lie about her size. Now, this is actual where we can get a bit more serious for a moment. This is not in the name of body shaming; this is something that is damaging young people increasingly as a society. In fact, more than once a new member has joined the Elle Tattle thread after previously following her, and said they were made to feel inadequate about their own shape and clothes size because Elle would very often be economical with the truth about her clothes size (especially when people ordered items off the Angelle Website). It is sad to see so many young, impressionable young people effected by not just Elle, but Influencers in general not being honest and using photoshop, lighting and angles (Yes, Angles not Angels) to create a more ‘perfect’ image and putting other peoples self worth at risk.
Quite often the image Elle herself has uploaded to Instagram has been in stark contrast to the image we see in her Vlogs from the same event. This needs to be called out as it's devious and damaging to those who do struggle with body image issues.
Photoshopping Her Baby
Eagle eyed followers spotted differences between the same image of Saint posted by Elle and Connor individually. Again this was quite controversial and caused a bit of a stir on social media as the Twitter Shitstorm was hitting the fan, more people were cottoning on to the fact that Photoshopping your baby shouldn't really be a thing.
Family Tree
Elle’s Family Tree
(Elle & Connor in the early days, Elle probably throwing a Shit Fit over running out of Maryland Biscuits)
Connor Swift = aka Con/Con Job/No You Didn’t Connnuhhh/One Cup Con/Count Con – Connor and Elle have been together since approx 2015. Turns out both of their Dad's had spent time in prison, so that must be a nice thing to bond over. They got engaged in the Summer of 2020. Elle moved out of the family home after quitting and returning home from Bristol Uni and into Connor’s family home when she then quit her day job and wanted to make YouTube her career. She started to document her journey in Body Building, both her and Connor were part of the early Insta/YouTube Gym Lifestyle movement. They eventually moved in together and rented a flat, then onto another property before eventually purchasing their own home in 2019. Not much is really known about Connor’s family as they have very rarely been featured at all in anything. A small glimpse of them in the pregnancy announcement video. During December 2021 it was also noted that Connor’s Mum and Sister were no longer following Elle on Instagram – there were rumours of a rift, but nothing was confirmed or revealed by anyone.
AKA “Count Con” – it is rumoured that he is in fact over a hundred years old and keeps rising from the dead. We’ve never seen a 20 something year old man look so pale and, well dead. He certainly gives off Vampire vibes.
AKA “One Cup Con” – Elle is known for being OTT with gifts and presents, Connor…. Not so much. Whilst Elle was pregnant, Connor did the bare basic and gave her a “One Cup of Tea Per Day” voucher to use for either Valentine’s Day or her Birthday. Which doesn’t cut the mustard when Elle in fact needs about 10 cups of tea per day to dunk all her biscuits into.
Connor is also known for following, looking up and liking Instagram models as young as 16, a few years ago he had a Q&A and you could see clearly that he had a pic of a girl that was not Elle blurred out. There have been many occasions in Vlogs where Elle enters the room and Con quickly moves or hides his phone away. More than once rumours have surfaced about Connor being the opposite of Couple Goals with girls behind Elle’s back on nights out.
On holiday a few years ago in Turkey, Elle was taken ill one night and was taken to hospital. Dreamy Con stayed out all night clubbing instead. What a Dreamboat.
As one Tattler commented in December 2021: "Whether Elle believes the specific cheating rumours or not, she should be definitely wondering why this many people think so little of Connor, and constantly pull him up for acting shady or disrespectfully. Yes, this is a gossip site but I don’t see cheating rumours flying around so often on other threads”.
Hearse-gate
This absolute iconic photo and comment from @Ellyjelly and @ChubClubThug is another Tattle Meme/Legend. One of the highest liked posts on any of Elle’s Tattle threads.
Katie Darby = Elle has a younger sister called Katie (aka Kit Kat, who is adorable and who Tattle have a lot of love & respect for) Elle noticed early on that she got more views (more money) when her Vlogs featured Katie, so started to feature her more and then started using her name in the Vlog Titles for Clickbait. Some of Elle’s highest ever viewed videos (apart from her Apology, Engagement, Pregnancy Announcement & Birth videos) feature Katie. In December 2021, Elle took Katie on her long awaited and long delayed birthday trip to New York (gifted for Katie’s birthday before the Pandemic) at this point Saint was now on the scene, and Elle, seeing the opportunity to make some Vlogmas Dollar booked the NYC trip for December 2021 and bought Connor and Saint along too. The Christmas Vlogmas in NYC were heavily criticised by some due to Elle making the trip all about her, and not Katie. Also, when Katie moved into her flat, Elle saw it as an opportunity for more money making content, as fans always loved to see her. During Katie's flat tour Elle came across snobbish and condescending for making a disclaimer about Katie's House decor taste (which was lovely and homely and the complete opposite of Elle's bland, colourless house) and also pointing out loads of hand-me-downs.
Deborah Jane = Elle’s Mum. Very sadly she passed away March 2020 due to a long battle with Cancer.
Giles Darby = aka Daddy Darby – now owns a couple of pubs (though you’d be sure he’s probably got a very creative accountant….) He gained notoriety for being involved as one of "The Natwest Three" (Google It) He was jailed in America, where during that time Giles, Deborah, Elle and Katie lived in Houston for a while. Then Giles and Deborah were divorced and after prison moved back to the UK. It’s never been confirmed but one of the weird revelations to come out of the old Tweets resurfacing was the mention of Elle having a younger brother – never been mentioned before or since. Nobody knows yet if this is true, if he lives in the UK or possibly the USA. Giles released a book in 2021 about his prison experience and did a feature in the Daily Mail, photographed with Lucy and Elle. A bit like his daughter, he was probably expecting sympathy for a situation he was in fact found guilty of. Elle just happened to have a handy affiliate link for her Dad's book top! Such a proud daughter for flogging her Dad's book.
Lucy Jessica Carter = aka LJC is Elle’s Older (step) Sister. They share the same Dad, Giles Darby. Lucy has also been a YouTuber for many years and has been featured in Elle’s Vlogs and vice versa over the years. They actually did a joint video (on Lucy’s Channel) a couple of years ago about detailing their experience about having a Dad in American prison – including a chat with Giles himself. Lucy is married to Jordan and they’ve got a couple of kids. Lucy also has two other sisters who are twins.
Hector and Herbie (Fur Babies)
They have two Labradors named Hector (they call him Hecky) and Herbie. They used to get a LOT of gifted stays at Bath Country Pets and Spa. It was like their second home until Bath Country Pets and Spa were made aware of the Twitter scandal and apparently stopped their association with Elle according to a reply they sent to someone on IG. Time will tell if they’ve rekindled their relationship with freebie stays or expected to pay now but it’s assumed when Elle and Connor went on holiday to the USA in March 2022, somebody was housesitting and looking after the dogs at the same time.
They seem to be very loved, happy and well cared for Labradors. Unfortunate victims of the Twitter Scandal - no more free dog food from Tails or PR packages full of treats and toys from Pets At Home.
Still. There's always the yearly Vlogmas opening credits scene to look forward to starring the boys. Alongside the standard "Dog of Influencer" Christmas family photo in matching Christmas Outfit Tat. Herbie looked like he'd reached his tolerance limit Vlogmas 2021.
Frenemies: James and Carys
Carys & James and Connor & Elle became YouTube Besties when Connor worked together with Carys on her workout guides. They featured on each others channels occasionally, and Elle and Connor went to their wedding. Carys announced her pregnancy first and then Elle 3 months later, from there on on their friendship started to have an air of the "Frenemies" about it. A few passive aggressive comments and actions from Elle (withholding the upload of her Nursery Reveal, even though the Nursery had been done for weeks so it coincided with the release of Carys’s birthing story vlog) was one of the most obvious and calculated moves.
When the Tweets were unearthed on NYE 2021, it took quite a few days (which in those early few days of the scandal seemed to go on forever as the story continued to break everywhere) for Carys and James to acknowledge or address the situation - seeing as they'd been such public friends and allies of Elle and Connor in the past. They eventually released a joint statement on both their IG stories on the evening of January 3rd:
Shortly after James unfollowed both of them, but Carys seemed to dither a bit before eventually unfollowing too. They also deleted any photo evidence of Connor and Elle on their IG Feeds. Nobody knows if they are still friends behind the scenes and the unfollowing of them both was just performative.
In The Style flop
Elle had a collection (her one and only collection) with In The Style released in Spring/Summer 2021 where she modelled the maternity version and her sister Lucy modelled the non-maternity version. Apart from the photo shoot and one vlog where she raved about all the pieces, none of these items were ever seen on Elle or mentioned ever again. Such a huge hit that it was, it was all knocked down to £5 within a few months. Must be a kick in the teeth as fellow Frenemy Carys continues to regularly launch new ITS collections still.
Elle did however give Katie a bin bag full of bits from her flop collection, poor Katie isn’t an Instahun so didn’t get a lovely PR box.
Make or Break (TV Show 2017)
In 2017, Elle and Connor appeared on the Channel 5 Show Make or Break. According to them both in a vlog a few years later, they sounded like they either regretted it or were embarrassed about it. It's fine though, because nobody actually remembers the show anyway and they were the dullest couple on it. They hardly featured, but highlights included one of the other contestants comparing Elle to a Vampire and begged not to spend time with her as she drained the life out of him. In one scene, Connor said he'd probably dump Elle if she ever put on weight (he later clarified only if to the point she was bed bound). Lovely.
Glossary/Various Info/FYI:
Angle/Angles = Elle’s Followers are known as “Angels” – but unfortunately for some of them, and fortunately for us, some of the Angels are not too bright and have in the past have described themselves in their IG comments to be Elle’s biggest Angles.
To their credit, some of the Angles are very gifted artists though...
Saint/SSS/Schutzstaffel/Suzuki = Saint is Elle and Connor’s SON. Born July 2021 (see the section on Elle’s pregnancy and the birth for full details) He has many nicknames on here, due to the fact that nobody can keep a straight face that a couple from Wiltshire, who believe they are celebrities in their own mind and just 6 degrees of separation from The Kardashians, actually called their SON Saint. SSS = Saint Seven Swift (Yes. Seven. Their lucky number and not to do with the fact they also believe themselves to be another 6 separations from the Beckhams) and Suzuki = as in the car, the Suzuki Swift.
Tiny Crack = Gone down in Tattle Legend. In Mid-Pregnancy Elle did a Maternity Haul Try on with Connor rating the oufits (give it a watch for the awkward cringe factor alone) in one part, Elle has a blue jumpsuit on and in the mirror behind her you can see the reflection of a tiny arse crack where the material has ridden up. EDL has a tiny crack. That’s all you need to know.
My SON = Another thing of legend. The birth of one of the greatest moments to come out of the Twitter Scandal that erupted in early 2022 (a HUGE section to read through in this Wiki!) The infamous moment in Elle’s (non) Apology video where she robotically listed people she had let down, and the only moment she shows a real modicum of emotion is when she says “My SON!” with an eyebrow raised and glaring at the camera. (No doubt pissed off at the fact that she’d now struggle over the next few months to monetize any footage of Saint as he reached some profitable stages like his 6 month birthday, 1st Valentines Day, Mothers Day and possibly his 1st birthday if they didn’t return to YouTube in time – more on that in the “NYD 2022 – May 2022 section!) It’s become a Tattle Meme Legend & Quote.
EDL/EDeLle = EDL is also short for the English Defence League. Early on in the New Year, Elle quickly received the nickname ‘EDL Darby’ by a very clever and ingenious Tattler. Again, another legendary moment that was born of the January 2021 Twitter Shitstorm that has stuck to this day.
Olivia = If you ever see the name ‘Olivia’ or ‘OliviaBOlivia’ Just. Don’t. Go. There. But for the benefit of any newbies, ‘Olivia B Olivia’ was a Tattler that joined around 2021/early 2022 and was around for the Twitter Scandal. Then all of a sudden, she dropped the bombshell in March/April that she’d been having some kind of affair/dalliance with Connor on and off for 6 years. She claimed to have receipts, but with just one blanked out message exchange the hard evidence wasn’t forthcoming. Another new user popped up and started an argument with her, claiming to know her in real life. Some Tattlers believed her, some didn’t, some were on the fence. Eventually a brilliant Moderator came to our rescue and did some digging to reveal that Olivia had multiple different Tattle accounts and had been arguing with herself! Olivia mysteriously disappeared, never to be heard from again…. No doubt still lurking to see what happens next. Did she really have something going on with Connor? Was she a bored Angle? Was it in fact Connor and EDL on a wind up? So many theories, but let’s not give ‘Olivia’ any more attention (her shenanigans took up about 2 threads and that was enough!)
Jess = aka JE55 = The numberplate of the person housesitting at Elle and Connor’s house whilst they went on holiday to the USA in March 2022. There is a second “Jess/Jessica” that is sometimes mentioned, due to a picture of Connor with some friends in early 2022 (after the Twitter scandal) sat at a table having a drink with a group of lads and the table had “Reserved for Jessica” on it. Tattlers theories went from – maybe Jessica is one of their partners and booked it for them? Maybe Jessica is a random girl that’s booked the table for later, but the Lads are sat on it for now, and most amusingly “Maybe Jessica is Elle, but doesn’t want people to know it’s her” Ok. Calm down. She’s not a one-named legend like Madonna or Eminem.
“Someone’s Nan” – Nan became a mythical figure in Summer 2021, when a random user came on to say their Nan had just bumped into Elle and Connor in town and has asked what the baby was called. Apparently it “started with ‘Z’ and ends in ‘achary’…” Nan was a Billy Bullshitter, but nether-the-less the legend of ‘Someone’s Nan’ was committed to Elle Darby Tattle Thread Memory. So much so that a Tattler created an account called ‘Someone’s Nan’ in honour of the joke.
Justice 4 Mog = Mog was Elle’s cat and a subject of some of her nasty Tweets. We can only hope Mog got justice.
Piss Stained Car Park = The local carpark of choice for Elle to do all her Urban modelling shoots in. It’s old and stinks of piss.
Just a friendly reminder from Page One: If you wish to watch any of Elle’s YouTube videos without her profiting from them, then you can do so by following this link # and clicking on what website you want (YouTube) and then searching her name, where any videos she hasn’t deleted since the New Year will be available to watch.
" and taking good care of herself by absolutely not doing anything of the sort to manifest a potential Gestational Diabetes diagnosis.
