Britain's Sarah Ferguson has been accused of a "hatchet job" on her new documentary. Angry residents of the Northern Moor estate in Wythenshawe, Manchester, staged protests ahead of a documentary fronted by the Duchess, "The Duchess on the Estate," claiming they were portrayed unfairly.
The 49-year-old duchess spent 10 days on the estate - which has 66,000 residents - for the show, claiming she chatted to youngsters about their problems after spending evenings "hoodie hunting" - but locals insist they barely saw her.
Councilor Glynn Evans, 59, a former Lord Mayor of Manchester who has lived in Northern Moor for 25 years, told Britain's Daily Mail newspaper: "I did not see the Duchess once. How can she have given a true reflection of the community when she was only here such a short space of time?"
"The documentary was a hatchet job. There is no gun crime, it's not a poverty-stricken area. She didn't see all the new secondary school academies or some of the best primary schools in Manchester, while 42 percent of people own their own homes."
Wythenshawe Labour MP Paul Goggins added: "I only saw Sarah Ferguson once, and that was at a garden party at a primary school that had 2,000 members of the community in attendance."
"Whether it will be included in the documentary I don't know, but it shows the real community spirit of the area - people helping themselves and each other."
Hours before the program aired, local residents took to the streets near their local community center to defend their homes and insisted their area is nothing like U.K. TV drama "Shameless," which depicts a run down northern council estate.
Louise Howarth, 29, said: "Northern Moor is far more like Coronation Street than Shameless. Everybody knows each other. There is a real sense of community, and it has improved - it is a lot nicer. The Duchess doesn't know what she's talking about.'"
Joanne Eyes, 53, added: "I have lived here almost all my life. I moved to Wales for a year but missed it so much I came back. Everywhere has bad places that need doing up, but the program pretends nobody is bothered."
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