Caroline Flack: “I can handle the trolls”
She’s had her fair share of knock-backs, both personally and professionally, but Caroline Flack tells Closer she’s looking to the future
t hasn’t been the smoothest I of rides for TV presenter Caroline Flack. She’s faced intense scrutiny on everything from her career to her love life – but she’s bounced back from the criticism and setbacks stronger than ever.
Caroline’s profile hit the big time in 2011, when she landed a presenting job on The Xtra Factor alongside Olly Murs. But she suffered a huge backlash later that year after she revealed she was dating One Direction heartthrob Harry Styles – 15 years her junior – and was slammed for the age difference.
FINDING MR RIGHT
She went on to find love with music producer Jack Street in 2013. But a year later it all came crashing down when they split just days before she reached the final of Strictly – which she went on to win – amid claims he’d grown close to Glee actress Dianna Agron.
But despite her past rocky love life, 36-year-old Caroline was recently rumoured to be dating illustrator Blue Logan after posting a cosy snap of the pair on Instagram – and she says she’s looking to the future.
She adds: “I feel really content right now so let’s see what happens next. As a kid, I always had lots of ambitions – I’ve got millions of things to achieve yet. I’d love to become a mum, have a family and do all that kind of stuff. I’ve still got that to come.”
Although it seems that whatever Caroline turns her hand to, she’s nearly always met with an onslaught of negative comments. As host of last year’s X Factor, alongside her Xtra Factor co-presenter Olly Murs, she faced criticism over her presenting skills, as well as her appearance. And during her recent stint presenting hit show Love Island, she was accused of flirting with the male contestants.
But in her typical laid-back style, Caroline laughs it off. She says: “There was no flirting from me! The contestants were like my brothers and sisters and I felt very protective of the girls. You do when you see people going into a situation they’re unsure of and you’re their only connection to the outside world.”
DEALING WITH CRITICISM
But faced with such relentless criticism, even Caroline admits it has been hard to battle so many knocks – but she says she’s chosen to use the experience as a learning curve.
She reveals: “You learn how to handle these things. I could walk away from it all, but I’m in the game because I love it. You win some and you lose some – it’s not over yet!
“There’s a lot of bigger things, aside from my TV career, that I’ve had to handle in life and that has made me stronger in other ways. I don’t find it hard any more to cope with social media trolls; my answer is to snap shut the laptop and go home.”
Caroline recently overhauled her diet, losing over a stone after embarking on a strict 12-week sugar detox, and she admits this has boosted her confidence. Having gone from a size 12 to a toned size 8, she works hard to maintain her new healthy lifestyle.
She says: “I get lots of sleep, drink lots of water and work out with a personal trainer; I get up early to make sure I can fit exercise into my day. Now I feel more confident and I don’t care as much about what people think. In fact, the older I get the better I feel.”