FRANKIE BRIDGE
ON FACING HER FEARS AS SHE GEARS UP FOR HER TOUGHEST CHALLENGE YET
Frankie
Bridge looks blissfully relaxed as she reclines on her sofa with her adorable pet pooch in these exclusive photos. But that scene of serenity is now a world away, as last week the author, presenter and mum of two spent her first night in Gwrych Castle to take on TV’s toughest reality show, I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!.
“My happy place is at home with Wayne, my boys and the dog… I like to think I’ll channel that when I’m doing the tough trials,” the star tells
hello! as she exclusively catches up with us just a few days before entering the forbidding castle in North Wales. “It gives me comfort to know my boys will be cheering me on from the sofa, but I’m also jealous I won’t be there with them.”
Frankie will miss many home comforts as she joins brave fellow stars including ex- BBC Breakfast presenter Louise Minchin, TV’s Richard Madeley and choreographer Dame Arlene Phillips, but it is her bed and pillow she will miss the most. “The beds they slept in last year don’t look cosy,” laughs the 32-year-old former The Saturdays singer.
Above all, Frankie will miss her family – former England footballer husband Wayne, their two sons, Parker, eight, and six-year-old Carter, and Turbo the dog. “My youngest is nervous because he knows I’m scared of loads of things, whereas my eldest is more like Wayne – they can’t wait to see me doing scary things and being with animals I don’t like,” laughs the doting mum, who will be taking on gruelling trials that in the past have included eating sheep’s penis and being trapped in cages with thousands of critters.
Wayne, who went into the famous jungle in 2016 and came fifth, has been a driving force behind Frankie facing her fears and embarking on her own I’m a Celebrity… adventure.
“He loved it so much, so when the opportunity came up, he said: ‘You have to do it.’ My main reason for not wanting to do it was leaving him and the boys, but Wayne was like: ‘We’ll be fine – go and enjoy yourself.’ If he wasn’t as encouraging, I probably would’ve found an excuse not to do it.
“His main advice was to enjoy it, to be myself, and to zone out during the trials, but he’s an athlete
so he can do that easily – I have a very different mindset to Wayne.” She is, by her own admission, “scared of most things” – from spiders to rats, confined spaces and even tomato ketchup on her food. But Frankie is determined to show her young sons – and viewers – that there’s strength in vulnerability.
“I’m always telling my boys that it’s okay to be scared or sad,” she says. “The boys are bound to see me cry on TV, but it’s not unusual for them to see me showing emotion. I want to show them that you can do things that scare you. That’s the biggest thing I want them to take from it.”
STAYING STRONG
A passionate advocate for mental health, Frankie has been open about her struggles with anxiety and depression – she has penned two best-selling books on mental health – and is no stranger to stepping outside her comfort zone.
“As I’ve got older, I have done things to prove to myself I can do them even though I’m scared. I’ve trekked the Himalayas and across Namibia – they were things I thought I never thought I’d do, but I had the best time.”
She reveals her mental determination has already been tested. “I’ve had days where I’ve said: ‘ No, I’m not going to do it.’ One day you’re excited, one day you’re terrified,” she says.
But Frankie, who has therapy sessions “as and when I need them”, adds: “I think the castle will be a form of therapy itself. We’ll laugh, cry and be scared together. You become friends with people you might have never met. I think everyone will open up and have really honest conversations.”
Frankie is not short of friendly advice from past contestants. Her Saturdays bandmate Vanessa White did the show in 2017 and her fellow Loose Women panellist Stacey Solomon was crowned queen of the jungle in 2010. “Everyone I know has loved it and they all say to try and
‘It gives me comfort to know my boys will be cheering me on from the sofa’
enjoy it as much as possible,” she says.
When hello! points out that she’s already the bookies’ favourite, Frankie lets out a sigh. “I don’t think it means anything. Everyone’ s opinion on the campmates changes once everyone’s in camp. And I always say I’m more of a runner-up than a winner. I was favourite to win on Strictly and I didn’t.” (Frankie finished as joint runner- up with dance partner Kevin Clifton in 2014.)
FEAR NOT
I’m a Celebrity… and Strictly are the two biggest reality shows on TV – but which is most nerve-racking? “When I did Strictly it was the first thing I’d done away from The Saturdays. I’d love to do it again now that I’m more confident. I felt nerves but I don’t think I felt fear like I do going into the castle. I got to put on nice dresses and do dances on Strictly. Here, I’ll be wearing not-so-nice clothes, stinky and freezing. They’re both shows I’ve grown up watching so it’s amazing to be able to say I’ve given them both a go.” When times get tough, the thought of spending a cosy Christmas back at home with her nearest and dearest will keep Frankie going; the decorations are already up.
“It’s our family’s favourite time of the year so I’ll constantly have that in the back of my mind to get me through. We will have fun festive activities planned for whenever I get out,” she adds – although lastminute Christmas shopping won’t be one of them. “I did most of my Christmas shopping in isolation before they took my phone [all the contestants have their phones locked away before the show] so I’ve got most of it covered,” she tells us, laughing.
On 25 December, Frankie will be hosting her family, including her sister Victoria (who lives in Bermuda) and her one-year-old twin boys.
“They’re walking now, and saying things. Parker and Carter are so excited to have them over. It’ll be absolute mayhem, which i s what Christmas should be. Kids running around, opening presents, loads of food,” says Frankie with a smile.
“I’ll have lots of mince pie eating to catch up on when I get out.”
‘I’m always telling my boys that it’s okay to be scared. I want to show them that you can do things that scare you’