I don’t think I’m alone in feeling that everything has changed in this eerie time of coronavirus isolation, but one thing that has become very quickly apparent is the irrelevance of celebrities and influencers.

Now, there are some wonderful celebs out there raising funds for good, thank you Lady Gaga (the World Health Organisation), Oprah and Leonardo di Caprio (America’s Food Fund) and Dolly Parton (to help find a COVID-19 vaccine) but in amongst the real life concerns of unemployment and quarantine it’s not helpful looking at the lifestyles of the rich and famous and imagining how much easier it would be to isolate when you have an Olympic-sized pool in your beachfront compound and an indoor gym the size of Westfield.

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A post shared by Dolly Parton (@dollyparton)

Now that we are almost entirely dependent on digital connection, it reminds you how much useless oversharing there is. It looks like this European summer we are going to be spared all the influencer posts, promoting their bikini-clad antics in Mykonos, in Bali, in Positano, and I am, quite frankly, thrilled to miss it as I sit here on the couch, trying desperately not to go up a size in trackpants.

We are far more focused on our health, the health of our loved ones, and how to put food on the table than following someone in a G-string spruiking fake tan on Instagram.

What once may have seemed mildly amusing and fun now comes across as tone deaf and indulgent. The annual Met Ball in New York is cancelled, of course, but it always had a touch of ‘let them eat cake’ about it anyway, which seems even more odious in this environment, and about as relevant as Melania Trump’s tennis pavilion renovations at the White House.

I am excited to share the progress of the Tennis Pavillion at @WhiteHouse. Thank you to the talented team for their hard work and dedication. pic.twitter.com/Wzown2ho26

— Melania Trump 45 Archived (@FLOTUS45) March 5, 2020

I was privy to an email this week indicating that some of the lifestyle influencers had decided it was time to give back, as all the ‘gifting suites’ were closed, and that they were going to forgo their rates for an Instagram post for a week , so just send them all free stuff at home thanks , which made me almost choke on my third afternoon tea.

It was surprising how rapidly we tired of everybody posting their at-home workouts, wellness smoothies, or the dubious must-haves someone has paid them to promote. Our essentials have swung around from the new square toed Bottega Veneta kitten heel, to plain flour.

Some very simple life pleasures have suddenly emerged in this time of uncertainty, when flashy discretional spending isn’t foremost in anyone’s mind. Baking, home manicures, playing board games after dinner (once you’ve finished watching the horribly hypnotic Tiger King series on Netflix), making your own bread, home brew and jam, having endless cups of tea, using the best china, taking the dog for long walks.

Reading books, instead of listless scrolling to see who was where, dressed in what.

It is a challenging time for all, but some time spent away from the world of crass self-promotion will certainly be better for our health.