‘I lost myself hosting Big Brother’
the main show and I was like, “Wow, how has this happened?”
Amazing! How did you feel?
That whole time was a very weird time on the show. It didn’t feel as natural as it should have, doing the main show. If I wanted to turn left, they would tell me to turn right, even with the fact that my accent was too Irish at one point. I just felt like it just didn’t click. Some people wanted me to host, but I felt like a lot of people on that show didn’t want me to host. I felt like I lost myself hosting the show. When I look back at it now, I don’t really recognise who that person was. Had I been myself a bit more, and if they had let me be who I am, I would have enjoyed it a bit more. It didn’t end in the best way, being fired on such a public platform.
How did you find out you weren’t coming back to host?
A newspaper broke the story to me when I’d signed a contract and was coming back to host two more seasons. And to find out they were in secret talks with Emma the whole time, it’s not a nice feeling. But that’s just the industry we’re in. It happens and I just had to hold my head high and walk away from that. But when I look back on my time being a housemate twice and hosting it… you have to find the positives.
‘I HAD TO HOLD MY HEAD HIGH AND WALK AWAY’
Did it leave you and Emma on bad terms?
There was no rift. Were Emma and I friends? Probably more colleagues than friends, but that’s OK. She was in a situation where she was hardly going to turn down the job. I completely sympathise with the position she was in. It would have been nice to get a text or a call beforehand. We’re colleagues, right? It wasn’t nice and then having to watch the show...
That must’ve been tough...
Also, there was no duty of care for me after that. No one sent me a bouquet of flowers when the show aired or reached out to me from the channel or the production company to check if I was OK. How was I doing with my mental health? How was I feeling about this whole embarrassment? No one gave a f**k about me, that’s the bit that was tough.
Has Emma reached out to you since?
No, Emma has never reached out to me in seven and a half years. We had
‘EMMA HASN’T REACHED OUT TO ME IN SEVEN AND A HALF YEARS’
a private conversation, I’m not gonna say what we said, but we made a pact that we wouldn’t actively talk about each other, which I’ve never done. I respect Emma. She worked really hard to get her break on TV. She was on TV for a long, long time and to see her now flourish and do all the shows... Emma’s a good presenter, I’m not going to take any of that from her. I was shooting a pilot for ITV and
Emma was on Loose Women and we met in the corridor, maybe a month or two after the firing, and that was the last time I spoke to her, in 2013. I’d like to think that if we saw each other now, there’d be a big hug, a big kiss, a how are
you. Life goes on.
And you’re doing The Real Housewives Of Cheshire now – are you loving it?
I am. I remember when that happened, I went into ITVBE and was like, “I’ve got to get this gig. I love the American versions. I want it!” I’ve done enough reality to know how it works. I’m kind of a referee, because you’re trying to get the answers out of the girls. It’s difficult because these eight ladies, wow, if they want to say something, they will. The show is very glamorous!
So glam! I had a mini midlife crisis when I turned 30. Is that how you felt about turning 40?
I didn’t care so much about turning 40, I was kind of happy. I’m now 42 and feel like I know who I am. I also feel like I know who I want to be and who I want to be around and I think that’s the crucial thing. I’m with the right people and everything happens for a reason. I’m supposed to be where I am.
How has lockdown been with your lovely husband?
We’ve known each other for a long time, we get each other and it’s quite nice spending so much time together and spending time with my family. Of course you wind each other up, but that’s life, that’s normal.
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