Where Are the Original Influencers Now? Uncovering Their Secret Splits and Scandals That Led to Their Downfall

BEFORE the likes of Molly-Mae and GK Barry, there was an OG ‘Brit Crew’ of YouTubers and Instagrammers who were the first influencers to make it a full-time job.

Their legendary channels exploded in the early 2010s, leading to die-hard fanbases, and them being leaders in the beauty and fashion market online.

Back in 2011, one of the top Instagram stars was Rosie Londoner, who now doesn’t post online Credit: Instagram/rosielondoner

However, from secret marriage splits to trolling and racism claims, many of the huge stars have experienced their fair share of scandals of the years.

Some have disappeared entirely and no longer post at all, despite still having huge follower numbers.

Here is what happened to some of the biggest names in from the old school crowd…

ROSIE LONDONER

Rosie Londoner – real name Rose Thomas – was arguably the IT London influencer after she launched her aspiration city blog in 2011.

Rosie is now married with a daughter and has relocated to America Credit: Instagram/rosielondoner

But 15 years after her enviable lifestyle page was founded, Rosie, 39, has now mysteriously stepped away from the spotlight.

Rosie stopped posting consistently on Instagram in 2023 – but made a shock return to social media in 2024 with a post captioned: “RIP to my perfect feed. You have to die to be reborn.”

But she has remained absent from her page since August 2025.

We revealed how the radio silence online is due to after being the target of cruel trolls commenting on her lifestyle and appearance.

Rosie has taken a step back due to trolling, according to a source Credit: Instagram/rosielondoner

It came after Rosie spoke openly on her Instagram page about navigating life with , following her diagnosis at school while studying for her GCSEs.

Meanwhile, rumours have swirled about her marriage to Dutch filmmaker P.J. van Sandwijk.

Fans have noticed that Rosie hasn’t consistently worn her antique sapphire engagement ring in her Instagram posts.

While Rosie, her husband, and daughter Lily, are now said to live in California, fans have been left wondering if the social media queen will ever make a return to her 333,000 followers.

TANYA BURR

Make-up artist Tanya Burr was one of the top YouTube beauty influencersCredit: Not known clear with Picture Desk

In 2009, burst onto the scene as a beauty influencer and found huge success as one of the OGs content creators.

Her loyal fans would tune in regularly to see which beauty products the former artist was recommending, or watch one of her many beauty tutorials.

So it came as a big shock to her huge fanbase when she suddenly quit vlogging ten years later.

The star deleted almost all her old YouTube content and pivoted to professional acting, starring in the Sky drama Bulletproof, the 2021 film Twist and .

Tanya quit making YouTube videos to focus on her acting Credit: Getty – Contributor

During her time away from her vlogging spotlight, – and has since with an unidentified partner.

Chatting to on his podcast she , saying: “I was getting a lot in the press at that time.

“I felt like I needed to step away, find my own voice again and I just needed to disappear for a while, so that I wasn’t feeling like my self-worth was tied to how much I was sharing with everyone.”

Asked how she felt after she decided to quit, Tanya replied: “It was a relief, yes.

Tanya at the Devil Wears Prada 2 premiere in London last month Credit: Getty

“I don’t think I felt the effects so immediately.

“I think that it took me some time to realise the pressure that was upon me all those years. I did YouTube for 10 years until I quit.”

Tanya has since resumed posting to her 3 million followers on the video sharing app.

Speaking about her return to YouTube she said: “I quit for five years and I never thought I would ever come back and then suddenly I just had this feeling of just really missing long-form content and so I came back.”

ELLE DARBY

Elle Darby was accused of being racist, after old tweets from her teenage years resurfaced Credit: Instagram

shot to fame for her vlogs about her trips to the gym, plus the usual make up tutorials and get ready with me videos.

Her success saw her launch Angelle clothing in 2019, which featured a range of tracksuits and tote bags and was affectionately named after her followers, who she refers to as angels.

However, three years ago, Elle was close to losing it all when a series of highly offensive racist tweets she had written as a teenager re-emerged online.

As a result, she was dropped by her management, lost over 100,000 followers and was forced to publicly apologise.

Elle and husband Connor temporarily relocated to America but are now back in the UK Credit: Instagram Elle was one of the UK’s top lifestyle bloggers at the peak of her fame Credit: Instagram/ElleDarby

Elle and husband Connor Swift – who she married that same year in 2022 – made the decision to relocate to America for a fresh start.

After just 12 months the pair returned to the UK, and Elle started posting once more, focusing on motherhood topics.

Eight months later, she unveiled new clothing line Our Good Sunday – which was criticised for its expensive pricing, with plain hoodies costing £66 and sweatshirts being £60.

CLEMMIE HOOPER

Perhaps one of the most dramatic exits from social media was that of , who ran the @mother_of_daughters page.

Midwife Clemmie Hooper ran the popular @mother_of_daughters pageCredit: Refer to Source

Back in 2019, and her 700,000 devoted followers would devour every post the ‘mummy blogger’ shared on social media.

The Hooper , Gas & Air, which the former midwife-turned-influencer shared with her , was on track to end the year with £140,0000 in the pot.

Whether it was fashion tips or an insight into her life as a mum-of-four her account was one of of the decade.

But then disturbing truths emerged in November 2019, and Clemmie’s world fell apart.

Mummy blogger Clemmie was forced to admit she trolled her friends and husband under a fake profile for eight months Credit: Refer to Caption Clemmie even trolled her husband Simon online, calling him ‘controlling’ – and later said negative comments were to cover up her identity Credit: instagram/father_of_daughters

She was forced to apologise for – including her own husband- in a bizarre campaign of hatred.

It was revealed she had been posting anonymously on gossip site Tattle Life, criticising other – even Simon, calling him “controlling” and “a narcissist” – under the pseudonym “AliceInWanderLust”.

Some of her trolling was aimed at Candice Brathwaite, a Black influencer and author, who Clemmie accused of “being aggressive” and “using her race as a weapon”.

Clemmie apologised, calling her actions “stupid” and saying she had been trying to “defend herself” from online criticism, but she has always denied .

After the scandal, Clemmie’s Instagram page was gone, and in its place, The House of Hooper was born.

Now, the couple regularly share house updates and renovation tips from the page, usually from Simon’s point of view.

ZOE SUGG

Zoe Sugg aka Zoella was a leading beauty YouTuber with a loyal fanbase Credit: Getty – Contributor

The Brit Crew was fronted by lovers under their online monikers and PointlessBlog.

Zoe went on to become known as the UK’s first YouTube millionaire, using her internet fame to start a multi-million-pound brand, unsurprisingly called Zoella.

still live in Brighton, but now they have two daughters – Ottilie, born in August 2021, and Novie, who followed in December 2023.

They got engaged in September 2023 after more than 10 years together, but as of December 2025 have not yet tied the knot.

They post less frequently on YouTube, focusing on lifestyle brands, podcasting and broader influencer work.

Zoe has so far not posted on Instagram, and last uploaded in December doing a summary of her 2025.

Now Zoe and husband Alfie Deyes mainly focus on their family life together Credit: Instagram