The tragic deaths of three paratroopers on patrol in Helmand on Sunday brings the number of British military casualties in Afghanistan to 100. A steady stream of Ministers and MPs have gone on air to praise the soldier’s courage and reiterate the reasons for why we are in Afghanistan. Rupert Everett, the actor, chose an altogether different approach. Publicising his documentary he risked the wrath of British servicemen and women by labelling them “wimps” in an interview with The Sunday Telegraph:
“The whole point of being in the Army is going to war and getting yourself blown up. They are always whining about the dangers of being killed. They are such wimps now. It’s pathetic, all this whining.”
Everett has since apologised for his remark.