Livia Firth responds to cruel troll after handing back her MBE and tearing up certificate over Trump visit

Livia Firth has publicly pushed back against online abuse after she handed back her MBE and tore up the accompanying certificate in a social media video, a protest she linked to Britain’s stance toward U.S. President Donald Trump during his visit. The Italian-born filmmaker and sustainability advocate, who co-founded Eco-Age and is married to actor Colin Firth, explained that she was returning the honor to St James’s Palace in protest of what she described as a nationwide appeasement of Trump.

Following the clip, Firth said she has faced a wave of hostile replies on social media, many of them generated by accounts she suspects are bots or fake profiles. She reposted a now-deleted comment from James Warwick, founder of Illumanti Vodka, which she described as toxic and personal in nature. She quoted the remark in part to illustrate the kind of abusive messages she says she encounters, writing that she had captured the exchange before it disappeared.

My vagina is not too dry for now but thank you for your concern, Firth wrote in a response that touched on misogyny and gendered abuse. She added that the real issue, in her view, is a broader pattern of toxic masculinity and abusive remarks toward women who speak out. The post continued with a longer argument that she has become part of a broader UN Women initiative addressing gender-based harm, and she urged viewers to consider the context of the criticisms as not just about her actions but about the way menopausal women are treated in public discourse.

In the social media video, Firth is seen holding her MBE medal before she tears up the certificate and shares glimpses of the medal in its box and a handwritten letter. She dated the note incorrectly in the post, showing October 24, 2025 instead of the date of the current post, September 24. The act was framed as a symbolic rejection of imperial legacy and a statement about accountability in leadership and international diplomacy. She explained that she accepted the honor on behalf of garment workers and activists she has campaigned alongside, and she reiterated her discomfort with the legacy of empire while recognizing the value of the work she and others have done to improve conditions for workers across the supply chain.

The public reaction to her clapback was mixed but largely supportive among her followers. Supporters praised her for confronting disrespectful remarks head-on and for using the moment to highlight issues of labor rights and gender equality. Firth’s background as a long-time advocate for ethical fashion and sustainable industry practices has long been a focal point of her public profile, and Eco-Age has positioned itself as a leading voice in the field. The MBE, awarded five years prior, had recognized her work to improve conditions for garment workers around the globe, a cause she has continued to champion through campaigns and partnerships with labor-rights organizations.

Beyond her public activism, details of Firth’s personal life have periodically surfaced in media coverage. The couple married in 1997 and announced a split in 2019, with the divorce finalised in 2021 after a 24-year marriage. Reports circulating in public discourse around the period of their separation included speculation about a perceived fallout and a widely reported past involvement with Italian journalist Marco Brancaccia; those claims have been a part of media narratives but do not directly pertain to the current protest over the MBE or Trump’s visit. In her current statements and posts, Firth has kept the focus on the ethics of public honor, international diplomacy, and the treatment of women who challenge political narratives.

The moment speaks to a broader conversation about how public figures engage with power, how online discourse treats women who speak out, and how celebrities use symbolic gestures to express political opinions. While some viewers viewed the tearing of the certificate as a striking, even provocative, gesture, others argued that a lifetime of advocacy for workers’ rights should be celebrated through constructive civic action, not by erasing representation of earned honors. The discussion continued across social platforms as followers debated the balance between protest and ceremony, and as observers considered how public actions intersect with ongoing debates about empire, memory, and accountability in contemporary culture and politics.

As the dialogue persists, Firth’s stance highlights the challenges faced by high-profile advocates who navigate the pressures of social media, public scrutiny, and the expectations attached to national honors. The incident has already fed into conversations about the responsibility of influential voices to critique policy, while maintaining respect for individuals who work within complex systems to advance social and labor reforms. In the weeks ahead, observers will watch how Firth and other cultural figures articulate their positions on issues of foreign policy, national symbolism, and the ongoing struggle to reform global supply chains in a way that aligns with humanitarian and labor standards.