The umbrella <a href=”https://www.hollywood.com/celebrities/britney-spears-57309651/” target=”_blank”>Britney Spears</a> used to attack the paparazzi in 2007 is set to go up for auction.
The now 35-year-old singer was undergoing a mental breakdown at the time of the infamous incident, which saw her use the green umbrella to hit out at photographers who swarmed her at a gas station, yelling “F**k you” as she lashed out with the device.
She then dropped the umbrella, at which point a photographer picked it up and handed it to fellow snapper Daniel Ramos.
The attack came just days after Britney shaved her own head at a Los Angeles salon, during a difficult time in which she was battling ex-husband <a href=”https://www.hollywood.com/celebrities/kevin-federline-57426855/” target=”_blank”>Kevin Federline</a> over custody of their two sons.
But now Daniel Ramos is marking the 10th anniversary of the incident by selling off the umbrella, and donating half of the proceeds to a charity of the singer’s choice.
“It was a bad moment in her life,” he said of Britney’s meltdown. “Unfortunately it was captured. They thought I was just out to make money at the time, (but) it was just a moment I captured.”
Britney had been on good terms with photographers up until her issues began. And when they spotted her at the gas station on the night of 21 February (07), they were unaware that anything was wrong to begin with.
However, as the umbrella situation unfolded, Ramos knew he was onto something, and added to Broadly he thinks the incident has gone down in history because it has a beginning, a middle and an end.
“(All paparazzi) know they have to tell a story because if not it’s not going to be big enough,” he said. “That’s what I was able to capture with Britney Spears. I was able to catch a story and finish it.”
In July that year, Britney posted a message on her website about the umbrella incident, writing: “I apologise to the pap for a stunt that was done 4 months ago regarding an umbrella. I was preparing my character for a role in a movie where the husband never plays his part so they switch places accidentally. I take all my roles very seriously and got a little carried away. Unfortunately I didn’t get the part.”
