WHY EVEN HOLLY CAN’T HAVE IT ALL
Queen of daytime TV and mum Willoughby says she has quit her lifestyle brand as she feared neglecting her family
THERE are some so-called supermums who seem adept at juggling everything. Somehow they manage to be successful career women while also embracing the challenges of raising a young family. If not on a conference call at the crack of dawn they’re on the school run.
Until very recently there’s no doubt that Holly Willoughby was among them. She combined her TV and endorsement duties with being mother to three children under 10 and was poised to unveil a new lifestyle brand into the bargain.
However the 37-year-old has now reluctantly walked away from an £11million deal as the face of the Truly collection of home, baby, fashion and beauty wares. Holly insists the reason is straightforward – she wants to put family first.
It was a shattering blow for the brand – announced days before its launch – although Truly will press on. Her 11th-hour decision is claimed to have displeased her friend and business partner in the deal, Dragons’ Den presenter Peter Jones.
“You cannot have it all,” says Holly, who married TV producer Dan Baldwin in 2007 and is mum to Harry, nine, Belle, seven, and Chester, four. “I’ve had the most incredible opportunities this year but it’s also overwhelming. It came to a point where I knew something had to give.
“Truly was something I was very passionate about but my husband has a really high-pressure job and I have three kids and other projects. My son Harry has got into football and I want to be able to take him there so he can do what he loves.
“I didn’t want to be in a position where I was working in the evenings and couldn’t be with them. It’s not just about me having my dream and everyone fitting round it, it’s about putting family first. So in the end it was very clear, I just had to pull back and say: ‘No.’ ”
She denies there’s been a fall-out with Jones, explaining: “We sat down and talked for a long time and it was obvious to all of us that I just couldn’t fit it into my life.”
It’s not as if she’s short of money, with an estimated £10million fortune since her 2000 TV debut, and no sign her star is waning.
Apart from hosting ITV’s This Morning, Dancing On Ice and Celebrity Juice, she’s agreed to become Ant McPartlin’s stand-in on the channel’s I’m A Celebrity. Then there’s her role as Marks & Spencer brand ambassador and partnership deals with Garnier, Oral B and Diet Coke. And best-selling children’s books written with her sister Kelly. But she insists TV work comes after family but before advertising deals. “My nickname from my management team is ‘Little Miss No’ because I turn down so much. I’m at home more than I’m at work.” Yet for bosses at Truly – billed as the UK’s equivalent of Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop – perhaps the warning signs were there. In 2012 Holly stepped away from presenting BBC One’s The Voice. It is filmed in Manchester and took her away from home for too long. She used that same word, “overwhelmed”. She was clearly worried that because fronting Truly was “a lifetime commitment” she’d miss her children growing up. It’s thought she’d have contributed a regular blog but her image has vanished from the company website. When she jets off to Australia next month for Celebrity Holly – who has not ruled out adding to her family – will take all three children plus tutors. She has said: “I love work but the most important thing is my family. If that doesn’t feel right, I put the brake on and pull back. Being a mummy is definitely my favourite job of all.”