‘Utterly out of my comfort zone’
TV’S Debbie Mcgee, 59, is stripped of everyday comforts for a new three-part series walking a gruelling pilgrimage
What’s this about?
Seven celebrities are thrown together to walk this famous pilgrimage (the Camino de Santiago in Spain). The walking was gruelling and while some people enjoyed it, others – like me – certainly didn’t…
It’s an unusual mix of people…
It’s a very diverse group and we were all of different (religious) beliefs, but we gelled immediately. Heather (ex-m People singer Heather Small), Kate (the Rev Kate Bottley) and I had a closeness, but we had great fun with the boys as well. I probably felt the most boring.
You describe the hostel where you sleep as “Cell Block H”…
We stayed in hostels, which were really basic, with shared bathrooms. We got to know each other pretty quickly!
It’s not a glam show then, like Strictly (Debbie was runner-up in the 2017 final)…?
This was totally and utterly out of my comfort zone and like nothing I have ever done before. There were hardly any mirrors in the hostel – you would be lucky to find one in the bathroom. I am a person who puts make-up on every day, and I tried – but walking all those miles every day in 28 degrees heat – it just melted off. There was no opportunity to be glamorous because you were only allowed to take T-shirts and walking clothes – and you had to carry all your belongings in a rucksack on your back.
What was your reason for doing this?
I married someone who was a complete atheist, but had been a Methodist minister (Debbie was wed for 29 years to internationally-celebrated magician Paul Daniels, who passed away in 2016). I’ve always respected people with a faith, but I felt I couldn’t believe in an afterlife. I hoped going on the pilgrimage might change my mind – but I still came back not knowing, and I don’t understand why people would do that to make themselves feel better! You feel totally unglamorous and at your worst. To feel good about myself I need to put my make-up on, have a nice outfit and keep fit. I don’t need to sleep in a bunk bed…
What would Paul have said about your doing this?
He would’ve thought I was totally mad! And he wouldn’t have understood me wanting to do it at all. I just thought it was something completely different from anything I have ever done...
You must be very fit, doing all that walking…?
This was recorded before Strictly, and I have always walked and kept fit with exercise like yoga and Pilates. Just before I did this, I started walking up hills near where I live, but I struggled all the time going up the inclines in the Pyrenees.
What did you do when you got home?
Literally, for about two or three days I sat with my feet up on cushions – and my sister and mum waited on me hand and foot. I was utterly exhausted and my feet were covered in blisters, so I let myself recover, and then I started getting fit for Strictly!
What was Strictly like?
It was incredible. I thought I would really enjoy it but it far surpassed that. The reaction I had from the public and my own peers in the business – everything about it was just phenomenal.