WITH ROYALTY AND CELEBRITIES RISING TO THE CHALLENGE NATASHA KAPLINSKY TELLS HOW A FIRST-CLASS IDEA IN LOCKDOWN WITH HER CHILDREN WON A GLOBAL STAMP OF APPROVAL
When Natasha Kaplinsky first suggested to her two children that they write letters to friends, family and neighbours during lockdown, it was just another way to try to keep them occupied.
But what started out as a project to stave off boredom soon grew into an impressive collection of replies, not only from their nearest and dearest, but also frontline workers, stay- at- home heroes and famous names from around the world.
“It’s a kind of emotional time capsule of what happened in that year,” the broadcaster tells hello! of the letters, which have now been shared in a book. In turns touching, funny, enlightening and inspiring, Letters From Lockdown – all proceeds of which go to the children’s charity Barnardo’s, of which she is president – includes correspondence from Sir Paul McCartney and Dame Joan Collins, activist Malala Yousafzai, tennis star Sir Andy Murray, entrepreneur Bill Gates and astronaut Tim Peake, all describing in detail their experience of the pandemic.
An avid letter writer herself, Natasha, 48, initially wanted to introduce her son Arlo, 12, and 11- year- old daughter Angelica, known as Kika, to the joy of communicating in a way that was neither digital nor instant.
The children became so gripped, they’d rush to greet their postwoman every morning at their farmhouse in East Sussex, where they live with dad Justin Bower, Natasha’s husband of almost 16 years, and 47 animals – including ten alpacas, four dogs, two cats, sheep, ducks and chickens.
ROYAL RESPONSES
“Because the letters meant so much to the recipients, as well as us, we felt like we should up our game,” Natasha says.
“I was also looking for a way to help the children learn about different people.”
Deciding to expand their list, they first wrote to Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker of the House of Commons, and then to the Queen and the Duchess of Cornwall, who told them she’d grown up in East Sussex and it was one of her “favourite places in the world”.
Camilla added: “Like you, I have been writing lots of letters, and I have also been working my way through a big pile of books, which I have greatly enjoyed.”
They widened their net to include rock stars, politicians, sporting
champions and film stars, asking the same two questions: what were they doing with their time, and how did they feel about the future?
Among the responses, actress Helena Bonham Carter told them she’d done a lot of snoozing and reading during lockdown and that she felt positive about the future.
“I hope you do too,” she wrote. “You haven’t been able to do the things you are used to, but what you have built is a superpower that will last for the rest of your life. Resilience. Don’t underestimate that.”
She finished by saying: “Once this pandemic is over (and it WILL end – everything does) we will find wonder from things we’d never experienced before.”
The children didn’t reach all the people they wanted to. “It’s hard to find people’s addresses – quite rightly so,” Natasha says. “I’m not sure the letter to Daniel Craig reached him, or the one to Mr Obama.
HIDDEN HEROES
“But once people found out what we were doing, they were very generous in opening up their address books and helping.”
A lot of the letters are very touching and show a real humanity, she says. “People might have a public persona or profile, but when the door shuts, everyone is just a person experiencing similar challenges.
“For example, I found Ed Sheeran’s letter particularly touching. Apart from the fact he’s a global superstar and replied, which was really exciting, he disclosed he’d had a baby and had set about a DIY project to make a cot from the same wood his guitars are made from.
“[Chef] Raymond Blanc’s letter really touched me as well – the fact he was so open about the death of his mother and that he’d been in hospital himself with Covid.”
The letters that most touched Natasha were those from frontline workers such as Neera Butt, a cleaning supervisor at a school in Birmingham, and Michele Walter, their postwoman, who were “crucial for people throughout the pandemic”.
She adds: “Through all the letters, it felt like there was a real attempt to reach out to others and that somehow lockdown unlocked a degree of kindness in people.
“And although everyone’s experiences of lockdown have been very different, it has been an enabler in many ways in what’s
‘Through all the letters, it felt like lockdown
unlocked a degree of kindness in people’
‘A lot of the letters are very touching and show a real humanity’
become most important to people – one’s health, the respect and nurturing of nature, being able to exercise. It was reassuring.”
Natasha considers her family to be very lucky – “We live in the countryside, we’ve got animals, which are an amazing distraction and we were able to go out into green spaces” – but lockdown still wasn’t an easy time for them.
Justin, who runs his own private equity company, became very ill with Covid-19 in March last year and still suffers with long-Covid, sometimes having to stay in bed for days with debilitating fatigue. Then, at Christmas, Natasha’s father-in-law, who was staying with them at the time, also contracted Covid and was hospitalised.
This has come three years after the family were in a horrific accident while on holiday in Corfu, when their boat exploded in a fireball after leaking petrol was ignited by the heat of the engine.
Natasha, her father and Kika, who was then eight, suffered burns to the face and spent 45 minutes in the sea before being rescued and airlifted back to the UK.
While the physical scars have healed, the psychological impact hasn’t faded.
“I think the journey will take us quite a long time to recover,” Natasha says. “When you talk about it, it brings it back. It was one of those times when we leant on the community and our friends to pull us through. It was a very, very traumatic experience, but we have to use it positively. We’re very grateful and lucky we’re still here.”
CHILDREN FIRST
Natasha is keen to raise awareness of those badly affected by the pandemic and is donating all the proceeds from the book to Barnardo’s. “Our children really struggled being separated from their friends and yet were able to connect through devices when many millions of children don’t have access to that,” she says.
“Huge inequalities exist and we need to reach out to children particularly. Young people have paid a very high price to keep us all safe this year and reaching out to those who need us most is one of my biggest commitments.”
Natasha, who has presented
‘When the door shuts, everyone is just a person experiencing similar challenges’
the news on Sky, Channel Five, ITV and the BBC and won Strictly Come Dancing in 2004, juggles her work with Barnardo’s with her roles as ambassador for Save the Children and is on the board of the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation. She now picks the TV projects she works on and says she only occasionally misses the cut and thrust of a busy newsroom.
Lockdown has also introduced new habits and patterns to family life – Justin is now home more often and they’ve started growing vegetables.
“We’ve just enjoyed the simpler things in life. I haven’t worn a pair of high heels for quite a long time, so wearing flats is quite joyful.”
When it comes to how she would answer her children’s question about the future, Natasha takes a long pause. “I feel optimistic,” she says. “I hope there is a reconnection with kindness and compassion that maybe people have lost sight of; that you can make a difference to your community if you just reach out to those who are around you.”
‘We’ve just enjoyed the simpler things. I haven’t worn a pair of high heels for quite a long time’
‘I feel optimistic about the future. I hope there is a reconnection with kindness and compassion’