A British artist who mostly creates portraits of animals, Sears was at fiancee Andy Murray's tennis match when she appeared to be caught cursing on camera.

Murray beat Czech player Tomas Berdych in four sets and will play in the Australian Open final on Sunday.

Sears was clearly fired-up when shown mouthing "f---ing have it you Czech flash f---," or similar words, as Murray broke back in the first set.

When the footage went viral there were some criticism of her behaviour, and even accusations of racism, but much of the reaction on social media has been positive.

German tennis player Andrea Petkovic, ranked 13 in the world, declared her love for Sears on Twitter after the incident.

Murray has at times been labelled cold and lacking charm, so it is possible the swearing may even have helped endear the pair to the tennis public.

Public swearing has been a hot topic in Australian sport recently.

Up-and-coming Canberra teenager Nick Kyrgios was criticised for shouting swear words in frustration on his way to a quarter-final match at the Australian Open.

Australian cricket players too have been condemned for vicious sledging over the summer.

But it seems when a player's partner is caught mouthing off in the stands, the public is more forgiving.

Sears' furious outburst was not shown on Australian television but appeared in the Open's world stream of the match.