I splurged £3,500 on DJ kit – when I didn’t know how to be a disc jockey
Newsreader reveals secret passion for music...
ITN news presenter Lucrezia Millarini would scrap VAT on sanitary products if she were made Chancellor of the Exchequer. Millarini, who was knocked out of ITV’s Dancing On Ice in last week’s skate-off, thinks the tax is unfair because it penalises women’s physical make-up.
Her biggest luxury is a twohour, £120 massage that helps to counter the pain she has endured while taking her lessons on the ice.
Now 43, she lives in London with husband, journalist Simon Kurs, and dog Milo.
Q Did you enjoy your time on Dancing On Ice?
A YES, I really lucked out with partner Brendyn Hatfield. He was incredibly patient and a great teacher. I came from a standing start – I never knew how to skate or dance.
The show is intense – it consumes your whole life. My friends and family did not see me for three months during training – while my poor, suffering husband was left to sit at home with the dog while I was at the rink or at work. As for the pay, I’m not going to grumble. But considering the time I put in, I would say it probably only works out at a fair wage.
Q What did your parents teach you about money?
A NEVER to spend beyond my means and get into debt. My parents both left school at 16 and neither went to university. My mother worked as a secretary and then retrained to be a social worker. My father, who came over from Italy when he was in his early 20s, worked as a waiter and became a restaurant manager.
Growing up, I didn’t notice that money was tight, but there were no extravagant purchases. If I wanted something expensive, like some new trainers, I was told to save up. I also saw just how hard they were working to give me the opportunities that I suppose they never had.
I think that work ethic has made me appreciate the value of material objects. Even now, I think twice before I buy anything. I have never had a store card and I only got a credit card for the first time quite recently to collect air miles. I’m super careful about paying it off every month.
Q What was the first paid work you ever did?
A WORKING in a local clothes shop as a Saturday girl while I was studying A-levels. I was only paid a few pounds an hour and I hated it. I had to stand on my feet all day long, but it was worth it to earn my own money.
A NOT in the way so many people struggle day in, day out. But I was paid pretty badly for my first job in local radio. I was 24, I had just completed a postgraduate degree in journalism on top of a postgraduate degree in law, and they paid me around £13,000 a year.
A LAST year. I have been progressively earning more as I’ve climbed the ladder at work. I don’t really like talking about how much I earn though.
Q What is the most expensive thing you have bought for fun? Q Have you ever struggled to make ends meet? Q What was the best year of your financial life?
A I’M quite boring, I don’t have expensive tastes. I don’t buy designer handbags or shoes. I go for a bargain – I like to make people think I have bought something expensive when it’s not.
I have splurged out on my first DJ decks and speakers, plus a mixer. They cost £3,500 which was extravagant given that at the time I didn’t actually know how to DJ. I have learned on those decks.
Q What is your biggest money mistake?
A NOT investing in the stock market. I have a lot of friends who play the markets but I’m not particularly savvy in that respect.
I still don’t invest. I wouldn’t know where to begin and I feel like I have missed the boat.
Q The best money decision you have made?
A BUYING my first flat with my husband. He was my boyfriend at the time. Both sets of parents helped us with a deposit or we would never have managed on our combined wages, both being newly-trained journalists.
We bought a small flat on a really nice road in an up-andcoming area of South East London in 2010. We were lucky we bought then because just after, the local market took off and we made enough money to move up the housing ladder. Our second property then almost doubled in value.
Now, ten years later, we are in our third property, a four-bedroom house in the same area. It’s all about timing with property. I feel we have been incredibly lucky.
Q What is the one luxury you treat yourself to?
A I BELIEVE in investing in my wellbeing. My treats are home massages, yoga classes and gym membership. The gym costs me £100 a month and the yoga classes cost about the same. I pay £120 for a two-hour massage from a masseuse who comes to my home and I think every penny is well spent.
Q If you were Chancellor, what would you do?
A I WOULD scrap VAT on women’s sanitary products. I don’t think we should be taxed on something which, like food, is a necessity. Women shouldn’t be penalised by the taxman for their physical make-up.
Q Do you donate money to charity?
A I DO. I have monthly direct debits made out to Guide Dogs for the Blind and Cats Protection.
Q What is your number one financial priority?
A TO be financially secure. I’ve never really been motivated to get rich, but I do need to have enough money in the bank for a rainy day.