“I’m A Naturally Happy Person”
Nadia Sawalha opens up about her cringeworthy “mum moments” and feeling body confident in her 50s
As a panellist on Loose Women, we’re used to Nadia Sawalha chatting frankly on everything from politics to menopause. Off-screen, she’s equally unfiltered. During our interview, she talks with gusto about ageing, body image, family life and health problems – pausing only to emit the occasional loud belly laugh. By her own admission, she’s “a professional over-sharer”. She’s also infectiously optimistic.
“I’m a naturally happy person – people have been annoyed with me in the past for being too happy,” says Nadia, 55. “I’ve never been depressed and I’ve always had good mental health. But I have to say this pandemic has really affected me.”
Like many people, Nadia’s positivity has been tested and she has battled with anxiety in the wake of the coronavirus. “I now find my feelings are so much sharper and closer to the surface. I worry more than I ever did, but at other times I feel happier than I ever did.”
Coronavirus has been one of the main topics on Loose Women since it returned in early May. And Nadia – who has been with the show, on and off, since 1999 – hopes it provides some comfort to the nation. “People want that familiarity, those faces that they know. We’ve been sharing our lives and
experiences with viewers for 20 years and now it’s nice to be sharing this totally extraordinary thing that we’re all going through.”
It’s not only Loose Women keeping Nadia busy. She does a weekly podcast, Confessions of a Modern Parent, with husband Mark Adderley, discussing the highs and lows of parenting their daughters Maddie, 17, and Kiki, 12. She’s also sharing her family’s various challenges via their popular YouTube channel The Sawalha-Adderleys: Family, Food, Films & Fun, which has more than 100,000 subscribers.
“It’s a patchwork of all the things we love to do together as a family. My husband’s a programme maker and a brilliant editor, so everything is filmed on his phone and he puts it together. We’ve been bowled over by the reception to it – we get thousands of messages every day. Basically, our ambition is to be Netflix!” she laughs.
Nadia has achieved a lot in her career, starting as an actress on EastEnders in 1997 before becoming a TV chef following her Celebrity MasterChef win. She also recently hosted her own ITV
“They say if you embarrass your children you’re doing a good job as a parent!”
series, Nadia’s Family Feasts, and says it would be a dream to front another instalment. But right now her focus is on the YouTube channel.
The Sawalha-Adderleys spend a lot of time together and clearly get along famously. But Nadia says there are plenty of times when she embarrasses her kids.
“Maddie nearly died when I did the pillow challenge,” says Nadia, referring to a lockdown trend in which celebrities shed their clothes and cinched a pillow around their waists with a belt to make a strapless “dress”, then shared the photo on social media. “She actually responded on Instagram, putting an emoji of a head exploding. I asked her, ‘What does that mean? Are you blown away by my post?’ and she said, ‘No. I’m embarrassed.’ Secretly, I was quite pleased. They say if you’re embarrassing your children then you’re doing a great job as a parent.”
Nadia has spoken openly about her battle to have children and the three heartbreaking miscarriages before she had her girls. Because of this, she isn’t too critical of her body.
’I’m proud off my uterus t and the fact that it could grow fingers and toes. And I’m very proud of the way that my body gave birth with no painkillers,” she says. “When I get into what I call stinking thinking – where I start to think negatively about my body – I just try to remember how incredible it is. My body is what it is, but it has served me well.”
Wrinkles, though, are another issue entirely.
Nadia says she struggles with the ageing process and is forever resisting the urge to have cosmetic surgery.
“I would like to have a facelift, but I think it’s going against the sisterhood. It goes against everything I say to my daughters, which is that it’s about who you are on the inside. They say it’s hard in your mid 50s, but much easier once you’re in your 60s because you just stop caring,” she adds. “So roll on the next decade!”
Nadia Sawalha’s podcast Confessions of a Modern Parent is available now. Watch her on Loose Women on ITV, weekdays at 12.30pm.