A TikTok creator with cerebral palsy has said her followers were ‘devastated’ after a video claiming she had died was viewed 650,000 times.
Grace Wolstenholme, 22, has amassed an impressive 1.3 million followers and 40.6 million likes on TikTok since she began documenting her life with cerebral palsy in 2021.
But one of her most viewed videos was posted without permission by an account that appeared to be selling pillows, with the caption: ‘I lost my autistic sister today so I bought this pillow to imitate cuddling her.’
The original video, which has been liked 5.2 million times, featured Grace falling over during a boxing session with her personal trainer.
Grace, who splits her time between Essex and London, became aware of the hoax when someone she knows contacted her mother directly to offer their condolences.
Furious, Grace has spoken out to warn others to ‘check the facts’ and be aware of misinformation online.
She said in a video shared to her followers: ‘It has come to my attention that someone has put on TikTok that they’re my brother and I’m dead.
‘Well excuse me if I’m mistaken, but I’ve not just risen from the f***ing dead, have I? I’m obviously still here.
One of Grace Wolstenholme’s videos, in which she falls over during a gym session, was reposted by an account claiming she was dead
The fraud poster appeared to be advertising his pillow business, and the video racked up 650,000 views
‘First of all, it’s very sickening. This boy must have a lot of mental health issues to say someone is dead.’
The fraudulent video appeared to be advertising full-body pillows by capitalising on Grace’s hugely successful post.
TikTok has since confirmed the video has been removed for violating its community guidelines.
Grace explained that the poster featured in the second part of the video and ‘pretended he had cerebral palsy’, which she confirmed was not the case when she looked through his profile.
‘He hasn’t got cerebral palsy. He’s just trying to get his business out there and. by doing so, he’s using my face and my name and saying I’m dead.’
When the fraudulent video was posted at the end of May, Grace had been ill for several months – a fact well known by her followers which, she said, contributed to the lie’s credibility.
‘Him claiming I’m dead is very serious, because people may believe I am dead,’ Grace continued.
‘It’s just disgusting how he can make out I’m dead to get views, and also to pretend he’s got cerebral palsy.
Grace, pictured, said she was ‘angry’ at the ‘sickening’ attempt to capitalise on a lie that has affected her life
The 22-year-old encouraged her followers to report the Instagram account linked to the video, which is no longer active
‘I cannot tell you how angry this video has made me. It makes my blood boil to a point where I literally want to…’ said Grace before gesturing animatedly.
The video also wrongly attributed the nature of Grace’s disability as autism, which added further to the flurry of harmful misinformation.
A second video appearing to mock Ms Wolstenholme’s disability was later posted by the same account.
Grace posted a screenshot of the user’s Instagram page, urging her followers to report him.
Since then, both the TikTok and Instagram accounts and the associated website linked to the shop owner are no longer active.
Grace said she has lost thousands of followers and seen a drop in views because of people assuming she was dead, which has reduced her income as the video app pays its creators based on engagement.
The BBC reported that TikTok did not comment on Ms Wolstenholme’s concerns around the sharing of disinformation on the platform.
The name of the business was not that of any limited company registered at Companies House and the VAT number it displayed was not associated with any UK business, according to the broadcaster.
Ms Wolstenholme reported the harassment to the Metropolitan Police, which confirmed it was exploring ‘several lines of inquiry’.
A police spokeswoman said: ‘The victim continues to be supported by officers. At this stage no arrests have been made.’
