Coronation Street Actor Nicola Thorp Slams Lidl Over Sexist Kids' Pyjamas

Coronation Street actor Nicola Thorp has called out Lidl for selling kids’ pyjamas featuring “sexist” messaging about superheroes.

Thorp, who plays Nicola Rubinstein in the soap, tweeted a picture of a girls’ set of nightwear featuring the slogan: “daddy is my superhero”, and a pack of boys’ pyjamas with the slogan: “be your own superhero’.

“Boys can be their own superhero but girls need their daddy? These pyjamas should be put to bed,” Thorp wrote in the caption.

When asked about whether the slogans were available on pjs aimed at either sex a Lidl spokesperson sent HuffPost UK the following statement:

“Both of these pyjamas have been popular with customers and were certainly not designed to offend.

“Customer feedback is incredibly important to us and we will ensure that this is taken into consideration for future collections.”

On Twitter @munkyfaz said this was “blatant sexism” and @Danoosha added:

“In this day and age you are selling stuff like this? Stop.

“A boy can be a superhero but a girl needs her daddy to be one for her?”

Francesca Mallen, lead campaigner for Let Clothes Be Clothes - a group of parents who have come together to ask retailers in the UK to rethink how they design and market children’s clothing - told HuffPost UK she was saddened but not surprised to find these pjs for sale.

“This is yet another example of how our high street is imposing harmful gender stereotypes on our kids, and the parents who support us are saying loud and clear - we’re sick of this,” she said.

“We would hope a company from our German neighbours would be more enlightened, but making money from sexism is clearly not just limited to UK businesses.”