I want my books to have a moral and represent every child
bigger than hair. The moral is to teach kids to be who they are. I want all my books to have a moral, to have positive stories for young children and to have every child represented.”
Rochelle, whose parents divorced when she was three, was raised by her mother Roz Wiseman, and says she had times growing up when she felt different from other children. “Everyone goes through a phase where the grass is greener, but with age you become more comfortable in yourself, from what you look like to how you approach situations. You learn to love and appreciate what you’ve got.” like everyone else. I’m lucky got a good support system.”
She and ex-JLS singer Marvin, 33, who live in Essex, share childcare duties, with the help of their family. “I just treat each day as it comes. Marvin and I sit down on a
Sunday and figure out the week. I don’t have a nanny. My mum has been a paramedic for so long but has slowed down with that now. I also have a very good babysitter.”
The couple’s careers seem to have run in tandem – both were singers in very successful groups, both have gone on to be TV presenters. They’ve been together for nine years and married for seven. So, is there any competition?
“He is very competitive but I’m not. He’s one of those people who’s good at every sport they try. It’s really annoying!
And I know that I’m not going to be, so I just hold back and
I’ve say, ‘No, I’m fine, you go for it’,” Rochelle shares, laughing.
“I’m his biggest cheerleader ever and he’s mine. When he’s done well, I feel like I’ve done well. We get just as excited as each other.”
He has made parenting and navigating a career much easier, she adds. “I count myself lucky having Marvin. My mum did it on her own, and I think, ‘My goodness, we really lean on one another’.
“Alaia came everywhere with me when she was little. But my mum says to me, ‘You never grow out of the guilt’, and says she still has it with me now. “Mum guilt is such a normal thing, whether you’re working or a stay-athome mum. My friend feels guilty because she’s not providing and feels that she’s not showing her kids that working is good. That’s the nature of being a woman. You put pressure on yourself.”
As well as co-hosting The Hit List, she’ll be co-presenting a new series of Ninja Warrior UK in April, and hopes there are more books on the cards.
Singer-turned-TV presenter Rochelle Humes talks to about motherhood, marriage, and her foray into the world of children’s fiction