Kate Winslet wins $40,000 in a weighty UK court battle

Whatever you do, don’t call Kate Winslet a liar. Yesterday the Oscar winner won a lawsuit in British courts against the Daily Mail, which claimed she had lied about her workout regime, or lack thereof.

The lawsuit came after the Daily Mail published an article earlier this year titled “Should Kate Winslet win an Oscar for the World’s most irritating actress?” The story featured shots of her naked in films to dispute an earlier statement she has made about going easy on herself and not working out during award season.

In a statement about the lawsuit Kate said: “I strongly believe that women should be encouraged to accept themselves as they are, so to suggest that I was lying was an unacceptable accusation of hypocrisy.”

Of course, had this suit happened in America, it probably would have never even gotten to court since our libel laws make it much harder for public figures to successfully sue for libel.

Kate won £25,000 in damages, about $40,000 U.S., and an apology from the Daily Mail. She seemed most thrilled about the apology, saying:

I am delighted that the Mail have apologized for making false allegations about me. I was particularly upset to be accused of lying about my exercise regime, and felt that I had a responsibility to request an apology in order to demonstrate my commitment to the views that I have always expressed about body issues, including diet and exercise.

The Daily Mail story, which has been pulled from the paper’s website, disputed a quote Kate gave to Elle magazine earlier where she said: “I don’t go to the gym because I don’t have time, but I do Pilates workout DVDs for 20 minutes or more every day at home.”

Kate has long been outspoken about weighty issues. She famously lambasted GQ in 2003 after they Photoshopped her into oblivion. And she has always advocated against the insidious pressure on women to be thin in show business. So her taking on the tabloids, especially on this issue, makes sense.

So, what do you think? Was Kate right to sue the Daily Mail? Should she have won? And, whatever her workout routine, I’d like to try it.