University lecturer from council estate dubbed 'blonde bimbo' hits back at men’s 'disgusting' comments

Ashley Collar refers to herself as the ‘real life Elle Woods’. Coming from humble beginnings, she grew up on a council estate and had ‘no real role models’ growing up.

Much like the famed noughties movie character, portrayed by Reese Witherspoon, Ashley boasts a colourfully vibrant wardrobe, perfectly teased hair and loves all things pink. Now a university lecturer, her appearance has certainly turned heads and drawn masses of attention from ‘disgusting’ men online.

Dubbed an OnlyFans model and a ‘blonde bimbo’, she's been told she sounds ‘low class’ and ‘uneducated’, and had ‘no place’ in a classroom teaching students.

But Ashley, who goes by @theblondeacademic on social media, is continuing to defy people’s perceptions of her, and has now hit back at the hate surrounding posts on social media, telling LADbible: “They’re the problem, not me.”

The 27-year-old from Moss Side in Manchester is now on her way to receiving her PhD in sociology after just last week submitting her final piece of work, having previously taught at the University of Manchester.

Speaking to LADbible, Ashley says: “I grew up in a council house. When I was younger, I was one of ten, but there were seven children in the house with my mum and dad.

"A lot of my older sisters went down the traditional route of having children and that just wasn’t for me. At that age I didn’t even have a mentor or role model but knew I enjoyed learning.

"I was always very bubbly but I was bullied in school. That's where I learnt to be thick-skinned. I went to a school where there were more middle-class kids but I was on free school meals, so people just took the p**s out of me.

“I was put in lower sets despite doing well in my SATs, all because of who I was and where I came from. People didn't think I'd achieve much, and that was the label I got. I have always had those barriers."

Ashley went on to achieve the top grades in A-level sociology and later obtained a degree, becoming the first member of her family to do so.

As the tables turned, she then became the one standing at the front of the theatre to teach students as an assistant lecturer, complete with bright pink desk and accessories. She admitted that she turned heads, with many of her class initially thinking she was one of the students.

'Disgusting' comments flood Ashley's posts

But after creating a TikTok and Instagram profile to document her PhD journey and experience in teaching, ‘disgusting’ comments from men then quickly began flooding her posts. One person even used her contact email to create a fake OnlyFans profile.

In one TikTok clip where she references some of the cruel comments, Ashley is seen in a pink leopard-print pattern along with the caption: “Exactly why I won’t stop posting, I must be doing something right!”

One comment read: “What is your PhD in? Is it OnlyFans?."

Another read: “There’s no way you’ll make it.”

While a third equally witty fan quipped: “Your buckets of makeup occluded your message. You sound like a coiffured airhead.”

Other comments on social media referred to her as a ‘blonde bimbo’ and ‘brainless’.

Responding to the comments, Ashley says it's disappointing people can't look past her appearance.

“It's incredibly disappointing that this is where we are at as a society," she tells us. "Just because I look a certain way means nothing. We have reversed so much in recent years and it's terrible.

“It’s disgusting. I did a TikTok live recently where someone asked if I was groomed then someone else said I was and that they did it. Another said my face needed to be covered in sp**, and there are lots of other sexual comments all the time.

“Then there are all the OnlyFans ones. As a woman you feel like you are scrutinised for everything. You could be the most successful person in the world and still get it.

"People talk about my intelligence, saying I've got a PHD in OnlyFans. Someone actually used my contact email to create an account which is just so weird. If you make yourself public in the way I have in this day and age, you will be attacked.

"It's because of my appearance. I've had people say I have no place in academia and that my accent is low class. Men objectify me all the time.

“I’ve done videos talking too and my accent has also gained traction. I’ve had comments on TikTok saying my accent has no place in academia and that it’s low class.”

She goes on: “I think it's actually important that there are people like me. Despite all the cruel, sexual and hateful comments I get, eventually people will learn there are people like me in higher education.

“Just because I look a certain way with blonde hair and my clothes means nothing. This could be a nurse, a doctor, people in all professions. I do wear makeup and my hair is big and curly, so people do make a judgement. There is an assumption that I am less clever, less articulate, or dumb.

"Laughter is the best medication you can get for it. I remind myself I am doing incredibly well and if someone wants to spend their time sending me hate then that's a reflection on them, not me. They’re the problem.

"Quite often in the first lecture, they think I’m a student. I love it, because it demystifies and breaks down the barrier between lecturer and student and that power imbalance that I don't agree with. In Manchester I had a group if international students who all called me Teacher Barbie.”

'The real life Elle Woods'

Ashley now wears her Elle Woods nickname with pride, explaining how it all started with comments on social media before it ‘just stuck’.

She says she draws parallels from the fictional character from the 2001 hit, who is a bubbly, pink-loving Harvard Law School student who beats the odds as the underdog.

“I loved the film when I was younger,” she said. “I filmed a TikTok at my university desk which I decorated in pink, and people kept saying it and making the link. I just knew I was going to embrace it and make it my brand.

“Growing up with not a lot of money, I couldn't do my hair or wear clothes in a way to express myself. Now I can. So I love all the bright colours and bleached hair that makes me my most confident. It was almost like as soon as the bleach hit my head, I was a different person.

“I think coming from a council estate and knowing that I had less than others around me, it made me hypercritical early on of symptoms and structures and how things work. I understood my experience and knew it was something that could open up a lot of doors for me, so I knew I wanted to succeed.”

Ashley now lectures at a different university, which she has chosen not to identify. She says that her social media following, which has ballooned to more than 12,000, has kept her going when she felt like giving up and pushed her to complete her PhD studies.

“I didn’t even realise I could get a job in education,” she said. “But I don’t think I realised how much I value my identity. Students often feel like they can’t relate to anyone, and universities can uphold very traditional academics that have prestige and power about them.

“This time last year, I was mentally in the worst place I’ve ever been in. I was filming content and wasn’t consistent. But when I gave it my all something just changed.

“I found an outlet with people who were also willing to support me and listen to me, who understood me better than colleagues and even people in my PhD community. It’s the greatest thing I’ve ever done.

“Not only has it been the sole reason I’ve actually submitted my PHD, but what held me together was the fact I’d posted about it and then couldn’t quit, so it gave me the motivation. I didn’t want to let people down.”