Kate Winslet wins $40,000 in libel lawsuit

Score one for Kate Winslet.

BBC News reports that on Tuesday London's High Court awarded the actress 25,000 British pounds (about $40,000 in American currency) in libel damages from the Daily Mail. The London newspaper had claimed that Winslet, 34, lied about her exercise routine and called her 'the world's most irritating actress.'

In May, the Oscar winner filed legal papers in response to a January article entitled 'Should Kate Winslet win an Oscar for the world's most irritating actress?' which she said 'hurt and embarrassed' her.

The piece — which also featured naked photos of the star — took aim at a quote Winslet had given to Elle magazine, in which she described her workouts: '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.'

In a statement, Winslet said, '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 wife of director Sam Mendes and mother of two added, '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.'

In 2003, British GQ published digitally enhanced photos of Winslet looking much thinner than her actual self; Winslet complained that the photos were changed without her approval, and the magazine issued an apology.

Source, Bauer-Griffin