Let’s talk about my wild side

Countryfile host Anita Rani on partnering Gleb in last year’s Strictly – and why she’s thrilled to be a judge in our fabulous wildlife photo contest

Even Anita Rani, who’s regularly watched by nearly 10 million viewers every Sunday evening on Countryfile, would agree that it wasn’t until she took to the Strictly dancefloor a year ago that she became one of the most recognisable faces on British TV. She quickly became a viewers’ favourite as she threw herself into each week’s challenge with gusto, not that it was exactly a hindrance to find herself partnered with Russian hunk Gleb Savchenko.

Today we meet at t rendy Shoreditch House, not far from where she lives in east London, and she’s fizzing with enthusiasm. ‘Yes, he’s gorgeous, isn’t he?’ she agrees when I mention Gleb. ‘And super talented and such a good teacher.’ But unlike a succession of other contestants (and professionals) in the show, she never felt she allowed the viewers to wonder whether the two of them might have indulged in a little horizontal dancing behind the scenes.

Not surprisingly, Anita was outraged at the speculation. ‘ I can’t count the number of people who asked me how I coped being in Gleb’s arms day after day. Well, my answer was that I hope I have more backbone than to abandon my values without a second thought. Gleb’s very good-looking but he has a wife and child, and I’m married to a handsome man I love very much.’ Indeed, this summer Gleb quit Strictly to spend more time at home in Russia with his wife Elena Samodanova and their young daughter Olivia.

Anita’s husband Bhupi is technology director for a healthcare company. ‘So when I was doing Strictly I’d set off each day from our happy home,’ she says, ‘and that’s where I’d return each evening. I’d have been rather a shallow person if I forgot all of that the minute I arrived at rehearsals. I’m 38. I like to think I know who I am.’ She’s more reluctant to be drawn on what many saw as the injustice of missing a place in the final in favour of Anton Du Beke and his partner Katie Derham. ‘I had a wonderful time on Strictly,’ she says diplomatically, ‘and the judges’ decision was final. I only have happy memories of the whole experience.’

Her turn on Strictly epitomised a woman who embraces variety – documentaries she’s presented in the past year have covered everything from refugees to railways – so it’s no surprise that she jumped at the chance to be one of our celebrity judges in this year’s Great British Wildlife Photography Challenge. ‘I regard it as an honour,’ she says. ‘Like millions of others I grew up watching David Attenborough’s amazing wildlife programmes, so I can’t wait to see the readers’ entries.’

She says her eyes have been opened to the wonders of Britain’s wildlife by a succession of stories she’s presented on Countryfile. ‘It’s incredible, isn’t it? Everywhere I go people ask me about it. I think we’re going through a time when people are particularly aware of heritage and being British, so there’s something reassuring about a programme that’s warm and cosy and safe. And something that celebrates this green and pleasant land. It goes out at seven o’clock on a Sunday evening too, a perfect slot. And you know no one’s going to shout at you from the screen. We’re all there to let the individual stories gently unfold.’

It wasn’t until she started work- ing on the programme last year that she became aware of just how much wildlife there is to be seen on these shores. ‘From my kitchen window in London I often see foxes, squirrels and all sorts of birds like wood pigeons and our very own robin. There’s lots of talk these days about mindfulness but if you just sit down and watch wildlife for half an hour each day, you can achieve the same level of calm contemplation.’

Wherever she goes, Anita likes to keep a visual record of events. ‘I have my iPhone with me at all times – and that includes when I’m filming for Countryfile – and I then post pictures on Instagram which

people seem to enjoy. They represent a catalogue of what I’ve done.’

The daughter of Punjabi immi- grants, she was ambitious from a young age. ‘But then my parents have always seen life in a wide sense, with- out blinkers,’ she says. Her mother Lakhbir (everyone calls her Lucky) and father Bal ran a business manu- facturing jackets in Bradford, West Yorkshire, and Lucky began doing bits and pieces on the local Asian radio station Sunrise.

Anita went along with her mother one day when she was 14. ‘And before long I found myself sitting in a studio, a microphone in front of me, hosting a kids’ show.’ That continued throughout her school career to a point when, picking a university degree, she chose broadcasting at Leeds. In her third year she got a six-month internship on BBC TV music show The O Zone in London. ‘All I was paid were travel expenses but I was determined not to miss the opportunity. I managed to find somewhere to live that cost next to nothing and lived off packets of noodles and a daily pint of lager.’ By 2002 Anita was presenting The Edit, a live entertainment and news programme on Channel 5. There followed stints on everything from the Asian Network to cricket on Channel 4, from Watchdog and quirky collectibles show Four Rooms to the Great Sport Relief Bake Off which Anita (naturally) won in 2012. ‘I could get quite misty-eyed,’ she says, ‘when I think of all the fun I’ve had along the way. I’ve been lucky but it’s important to recognise good luck when it comes your way and run with it. Luck favours the brave; that’s what I always say.’

Amid all this non-stop professional activity, how conscious is she of her ticking biological clock? ‘Bhupi and I are having such a good time right now, really enjoying our life together. I was 32 when I got married and that’s very late for an Indian. So I’m making a choice and I’m aware of that. My career is going great guns. But I’m healthy and in my head I’m 25. A lot of people these days have kids in their 40s. We’ll see. The truth is, I’m waiting for Mum to move to London. It’s good to have grandparents round the corner.’

She says her recent documentary The Refugee Camp, a two- parter giving an insight into life at Zaatari, a desert city in Jordan built for 80,000 displaced Syrians, hit her hard. ‘I made it straight after the Strictly tour so it was back to real life with a bump. Strictly was amazing and such fun but it wasn’t real. Two weeks in a refugee camp is real, believe me. It breaks my heart when I think back to the kindest, most open-hearted people I’ve ever met.’

And now Anita’s landed the job of hosting the Strictly tour when it kicks off again in January. ‘I stood in for host Mel Giedroyc at Nottingham last year when she was indisposed and I just loved it. But this offer came completely out of the blue. I’m thrilled.’

What does she do when she’s not working? She looks confused. ‘Not work?’ she jokes. ‘ What can you mean?’ Her husband claims she never switches off. ‘That’s not quite true,’ she insists. ‘I’m comfortable in my own company and I do like getting lost in a good book.’

Even so, it’s her work and its demands that really fire Anita. ‘I never thought I’d be a part of a series like Countryfile,’ she says, ‘and it’s because of that show that I’ve got the chance to judge what I know will be some beautiful British wildlife photographs.’ Countryfile, Sunday, 6.15pm, BBC1.