Holding a grudge for 15 years isn’t long enough! There’s power in being petty

A woman told TikTok how she ruined a man’s life for more than a decade because he dared insult her friend. Good for her, writes comedian Vix Leyton – there’s a certain art in never letting go...

Fifteen years ago, Linda Solley Hurd was at a comedy show when a friend accidentally caused the man behind her to spill his drink all over himself. He swore and spat at her – and Hurd never forgave him... (TikTok/@lindasolleyhurd)

A woman has admitted she spent 15 years getting revenge on a man who wronged her friend – including breaking off his engagement – and I couldn’t be more proud of her. There’s nothing (and I mean nothing) more powerful than being petty. Believe me.

Putting yourself out unnecessarily to score points against people who might not even know you’ve scored them is more than just simple revenge – it’s an art form. And us Brits are brilliant at it.

We have form on petty behaviour. We’re world class. We are the originators of baking birthday cakes – for potholes (no, really: residents of Connemara in Galway were so incensed by the fact a pothole hadn’t been fixed by the local council after two years, that they bought it a caterpillar cake to celebrate its birthday). But we’re not just petty in contemporary times – we have form historically, too.