‘My money rule? Live within your means’
Countryfile co-host Anita Rani has a new Channel 4 series, Secret Spenders, so we catch up with her to chat about the shocking stories on the show, how it’s easy to haemorrhage money and her own guilty pleasures
T‘I could do with Emmanuel and Anna helping me’
here’s no stopping Anita Rani. She’s a regular co-host of Countryfile and the last few months have seen her front a new quiz show –
The Answer Trap – and join the presenting line-up on
Woman’s Hour. And when we were all stuck at home during lockdown? Anita wrote a book about her life, The Right Sort Of Girl.
Now Anita’s back on screen with a new show, Secret Spenders, which takes a forensic look at the cash we’re splashing on the quiet and gives households top tips on how to turn their financial fortunes around…
Hi Anita! Tell us how Spenders works…
Secret
One person gets in touch because they are concerned about the spending habits of the other – at the end of the month, there’s nothing left in the bank. We plant cameras in the house to secretly film them and follow them around a bit. Then we rock up and surprise the unknown party.
And then your two experts, Emmanuel and Anna, get involved?
Yes, Emmanuel goes through their bank statements and their finances, and Anna looks at their lifestyle and spending habits. And we leave them within 24 hours with a much better understanding of what they should be doing and could be doing to save money. I could do with an Anna and Emmanuel coming into my life!
What are the kinds of traps the families fall into?
It’s stuff that is so relatable. In one episode, Alex likes to spend hours in the supermarket spending on stuff that they don’t even need. They love ordering things from Amazon. Rohini loves going out for nice lunches and they order lots of takeaways. But what they find is that they’ve got nothing left at the end of the month. And they are a young family and want to start saving for a house. For them it’s a concern, because they’re thinking about their future.
Do you have any bad habits when it comes to spending?
I’m like everybody. We can just order things online and on our phones and you never have to see any cash. It’s like… Uber, Deliveroo… they’re free, right? And listen, nobody needs to see the amount I’m spending on alcohol, not in the last year!
Were you shocked by any of the spending stories on the show?
One family did take out a loan to buy a camper van because it was the wife’s dream to go on road trips around the country, and he loves her so much that he bought it. And the camper van has been driven twice. They’re sitting there looking at it thinking, “One day we’ll live our dream.” But in the meantime, they’re just haemorrhaging cash. But we all bury our heads in the sand.
‘My husband’s weakness is a power tool. I don’t ask how many he has’
What are you and your husband Bhupinder’s weaknesses, spending-wise?
Ah, he loves a tool! I always know where to find my husband in B&Q because he’s always drooling over the power tools. I never ask how many power tools he’s got. My guilty pleasure is expensive candles, and I never tell my mum what they cost.
But generally would you say you’re quite sensible with money?
I do have a golden rule and it’s something my dad said to me before I left to go to university. He sat me and my brother down and said, “Don’t go to the pub if you can’t afford a round.” And it’s something I live by. He meant, “Don’t be that person who’s sitting there waiting for someone else to pay. If you can’t afford to do it just don’t go.” It’s all about living within your means. But that’s so difficult, isn’t it?