Take a day off
Ever wondered how the stars relax? Hannah Stephenson and Gabrielle Fagan find out what a perfect day off looks like for this lot
1. LINDA NOLAN
“I have a lie-in on Sundays - I love my bed. I’ll normally have bacon and eggs for breakfast, which is a throwback to my childhood in Blackpool. “Then normally, I’ll meet up with some of my family and we’ll go somewhere for lunch. My sisters live close to me in Blackpool, apart from Coleen, who’s in Cheshire. “Then in the evening, myself, Maureen, Anne and Denise go to bingo. We love bingo. We still go on a Sunday to the Mecca in Blackpool. We never win. We lose bigtime and we stay to the bitter end. It’s our little treat.”
2. GREG WISE
“We [Wise is married to actress Emma Thompson] don’t really have [regular days off], as self-employed people. But if I did, my favourite day would be spent up in Scotland where we have a cottage. It would include a big long sweaty humph up into the hills, probably in the wintertime, on a nice crisp day, getting really exhausted. This would be followed by having a sauna and jumping into the river, possibly breaking the ice, and then drinking the local fine ales in front of a roaring fire with some chums.”
3. AMANDA BARRIE
“On a heavenly Sunday, I’d wake up late probably about 10am. Breakfast has to be a bacon sandwich. If we’re at our home in Somerset, I’d have a swim in our pool, and then throw a ball around for our dog, Coco. If we’re in London, I’d probably go shopping. I’d have to do that on my own as Hilary [Barrie’s wife] hates shopping. “In the afternoon, I’d have a seat in the director’s box with all my family around me and see Manchester City beat Manchester united, 15-0. Then I’d play it again and again on repeat on TV to savour the moment. “In the evening, we’d watch three episodes from a favourite series of the moment and then I’d ring up all my best friends for a gossip. We’d go to bed to watch telly and be up there by 9pm.”
4. NELL MCANDREW
“I’d get up early and have a run, because that’s a brilliant start to the day and is my routine. Then I’d come home to a cooked breakfast with the family. After that, we’d go off to the countryside for a picnic and meet up with lots of friends. “The biggest treat at the end of the day would be to have a long, luxurious soak in a bath. That used to be something I always enjoyed when I was single. Then I might settle down and read a book - another pleasure that I rarely get time to enjoy.”
5. SARA COX
“My eldest daughter, Lola, 13, could repeat this perfectly, because whenever she’s mithering and nagging me saying, ‘I want this or that or the other’, I retort ‘Well, I want to be lying on a beach in Mauritius with a good book and a pina colada, but I can’t have that, so there you go’. “In the real world, I’d enjoy a lie-in. I like to disappear and get some exercise. I jump around for about half an hour. “I love a Sunday roast, but I’ve got over that a bit, because I slave away peeling and roasting, and then I feel I have to make the kids eat it. So instead, we like a snack lunch or, even better, I’d cadge lunch off my in-laws who live nearby. And in the evening, somehow the kids’ PE kit and homework would magically be sorted without my lifting a finger - now that would be a dream!”