Do you know the difference between a cougar and a panther?
No, I’m not asking you to brush up on your David Attenborough impression. Cougars, panthers, and MILFS are all popular labels for women of a certain age who attract younger men. Labels that some wear with pride, but others would prefer to see disappear back into the jungle.
The latest high-profile woman to get stuck with the demeaning ‘cougar’ badge is the French First Lady, Brigitte Macron. Yes, yes, we all know the story; Macron is a grandmother-of-seven and is 25 years older than her 39-year-old hubby. Every tabloid in the world must have rubbed their hands in anticipatory glee when word got out that Brigitte and Emmanuel met when he was 15 and she was his (married) teacher, with a daughter of the same age, not to mention in the same class.
A story made in newspaper heaven. But a quick search through the bowels of the media provides us with no such terms for the opposite sex. How has it come to be that we have a choice of three charming labels for women who ‘entice’ younger men but not a single one for the Ronnie Woods, Harrison Fords and Alec Baldwins of this world? ‘Sugar Daddy’ doesn’t quite sound as offensive as Mom I’d like to F—— does it?
As the redtops standby in anticipation of Cheryl Whatever-her-second-name-is-now and Liam turning into another Demi and Ashton, I will say this; these younger men don’t even know they are born.
They have not been pounced on by a big cat predator of any description. Rather, they have snagged themselves strong, emotionally resilient, and (notably) financially independent women at the peak of their sexuality. Women who are confident enough to walk into a room, onto a red carpet and yes, even into the Élysée Palace, look everyone else straight in the raised eyebrow and OWN it.
Perhaps, instead of recycling ‘the cougar thing’ once more, the world’s media should take their lead from Joan Collins who, when asked about the 32-year age gap between her and husband Percy, stoically replied “If he dies, he dies.”
