Overview

Britnye and James Ellingford, also known by their TikTok handles @AgeGap50 and @Age35Gap, is an Australian couple with a 35-year age gap that became popularized on TikTok in late 2022. Britnye is 22 and Dr. James Ellingford, the ex-chairman of Creso Pharma, is 57. The couple began documenting their relationship on TikTok in August 2022 and inspired controversy that November when videos of James allegedly being abusive towards Britnye, as well as James being purportedly racist towards Chinese people, started going viral, resulting in his exit from Creso Pharma.

History

On August 3rd, 2022, the TikTok^[1][2] page @agegap50 posted their first two videos. The first video shows James Ellingford throwing money at Britnye, which some perceived was akin to a stripper, as she dances, garnering over 318,000 views in three months (shown below, left). In the second video, they acknowledge the age gap and share their ages, then kiss, garnering over 1.1 million views in three months (shown below, right).

The couple continued to document their relationship over the following months through uploads and TikTok livestreams, often to hundreds of thousands and millions of views. Many viewers have been critical of the relationship for the age gap and the way Britnye acts in some videos. For example, on October 8th, @AgeGap50 uploaded a video to TikTok^[3] where Britnye explains that she's turning 23 and repeats what James says in odd ways, with the top comments wondering if she's on drugs, garnering over 1.4 million views in a month (shown below).

The couple frequently get into arguments on livestreams and seemingly have an on-again-off-again relationship, with Ellingford sometimes going live on his own to complain about Britnye. A frequent topic of arguments revolves around Britnye spending too much of Ellingford's money.

James Ellingford Promoted To Creso Pharma Non-Executive Chairman

On October 31st, 2022, Australia Financial Review^[4] published an article about how a member of Creso Pharma's board, Adam Blumenthal, resigned. The article, titled, "Creso Pharma chairman’s unmissable TikTok show," explains how James Ellingford was named the new non-executive chairman of the company, then goes on to detail his and Britnye's TikTok account.

The article details a livestream that Ellingford did on his own where he says to Britnye, "You’re probably listening. Go back to OnlyFans. Go back to prostitution. Go back to stripping. Go back to disrespecting yourself as a woman." He also accused her of allegedly stealing $35,000 from him.

Exit From Creso Pharma

In November 2022, TikTokers began reuploading videos from Ellingford and Britnye's TikTok livestreams to provide evidence of Ellingford being abusive towards Britnye and being generally unhinged. In one clip, what some speculated appear to be baggies of cocaine or ketamine sit on the table (shown below, left). In another clip, Ellingford ends a livestream as Britnye seemingly slurs her words and acts spaced-out as chatters wonder if she's high (shown below, right).

In another viral clip, James says he doesn't like Chinese people and mocks them in a stereotypical way (shown below). On November 17th, Australia Financial Times^[5] reported that Ellingford stepped down from his position at Creso Pharma. The company announced that Boaz Wachtel would replace him effective immediately.

Online Presence

As the videos of Britnye and James' lives went viral on TikTok, people began discussing the relationship and drama surrounding the couple. On November 17th, 2022, YouTuber^[6] Drama Investigator posted a video detailing the drama, garnering over 4,900 views in a day (shown below).

Search Interest

External References