Meshel Laurie praises former nemesis Abbie Chatfield as she buries the hatchet following their feud over Em Rusciano’s autism diagnosis
Meshel Laurie has ended her feud with fellow podcaster Abbie Chatfield, months after their very public clash over Em Rusciano’s autism diagnosis.
Bachelor star Chatfield, 28, accused Laurie of “ableism” and “internalized misogyny” in March after the 50-year-old accused Rusciano of faking her recent autism diagnosis for “power.”
It appears tensions between the pair have since subsided, as Laurie surprised listeners by praising Chatfield in a segment of her Can We Be Real? podcast from last week.
In the segment, the former radio announcer congratulated Chatfield on recently quitting her Hit FM radio hosting gig to focus on her TV career, podcast and personal life.
“Seeing Abbie Chatfield stand up and say, ‘You know what? I’m quitting my radio show because I don’t like it’… that’s huge,” said Laurie, who recently described the radio industry as “sexist” and “misogynistic.”
“I don’t think most people outside of the radio industry or just the entertainment industry realize how big that is. And it just takes so much strength from that part of the entertainment industry,” Laurie enthuses.
“It’s like what she did is so brave,” she added.
It comes just six months after Chatfield brutally bashed Laurie amid her feud with ex-radio host Em Ruciano.
Meshel Laurie, 50, (left) has ended her feud with fellow podcaster Abbie Chatfield, 28, (right), months after their very public clash over Em Rusciano’s autism diagnosis
Rusciano, who was recently diagnosed with level one autism at the time, was accused by Laurie, who is the parent of an autistic child, of “faking” the disorder for “power.”
Addressing the drama about her It is much podcast, Chatfield defended Ruciano and even credited the host of the Emsolation podcast with encouraging her to get diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) last year.
“(Laurie) actually said that Em Rusciano falsified her autism diagnosis. If someone ‘feigns a diagnosis’, how does that affect you, Meshel Laurie?” Chatfield said.
Laurie surprised listeners by praising Chatfield in a segment of her Can We Be Real? podcast from last week. In the segment, the former radio announcer congratulated Chatfield on recently quitting her Hit FM radio hosting gig to focus on her TV career, podcast and personal life.
It comes just six months after Chatfield brutally bashed Laurie amid her feud with ex-radio host Em Rusciano (pictured). Rusciano, who was recently diagnosed with level one autism at the time, was accused by Laurie, who is the parent of an autistic child, of “faking” the disorder for “power.”
“That’s not true, honey. That is not the case. Nobody mentioned you again. You’d come running into the room with new information and everyone would be like, ‘Who the fuck are you?'”
Laurie had previously said she has close family on the autism spectrum, and “didn’t appreciate people jumping on the bandwagon for influence” or using the disorder to excuse “terrible behavior” that has caused “poor career outcomes” – a clear comment on Ruciano’s problematic history on commercial radio.
In response, Chatfield said: ‘It’s so skilful to say you know what autism looks like in different people, when it’s very different in everyone.
Chatfield defended the drama over her It’s a Lot podcast and defended Ruciano, even crediting the Emsolation podcast host for encouraging her to be diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) last year
“That’s why it’s a spectrum!”
Chatfield also said Laurie’s “internalized misogyny” was behind her attack on Rusciano.
“I love Em, she’s always been so nice to me,” she said. “She’s one of the main reasons I was diagnosed.”
Chatfield was diagnosed with ADHD in May 2022, about 12 months after Em was.
“(Em) always supports me and DMs me when I post ADHD stuff,” she added.
‘She looks a bit like (my) ADHD big sister! So I really like Em. She has always been very helpful and wonderful.”
Chatfield called Laurie (pictured) ‘ableist’ and accused her of ‘internalized misogyny’ in extraordinary rant