Good luck to Ant for making a hard decision – but it’s the right one

I was so impressed to see the announcement from Ant McPartlin that he is going into rehab. Ant is a lovely man and he could have done this in secret. Putting the news out there serves two main purposes. It really helps anyone else going through this to say if Ant is brave enough to do something about it and if it can happen to someone like him, I could get help too. It also helps Ant because if you don't tell anyone, there will always be that constant “why aren't you drinking?” or “oh just have one”. He has also said that he has had a problem with painkillers, but whatever his problems they must be doubled for such a highprofile celebrity for whom there is nowhere to hide. To us, the amazing riches and fame that celebrities have seem wonderful, but the reality of that life is often very different. I have seen many famous people having to use alcohol or drugs as a way to deal with the nerves in the beginning and then, because money is no object and parties where champagne is flowing are a way of life, it becomes a problem. A lot of them just continue, whereas Ant has been brave enough to say enough is enough. Good luck to Ant and his lovely wife Lisa. Hopefully they will turn their lives around and we will have Ant back on our TV by the end of the year for I'm A Celebrity. It's a good time of year to get healthy in many ways. Gordon and I joined a new gym near us this week and I went to my first yoga class. Apparently balance is a very important part of health and so standing on one foot or spending a lot of the class upside down in a “downward dog” pose is very health giving. Everyone else had done it before so I need to improve a lot! 12 The next class I'm going to try is Pilates. I will probably be rubbish at that but I'm going to have a go! The weather we have been having this week has been wonderful. Gordon and I sat out in the garden until 11pm the other night playing Scrabble. It sounds a bit dull but it was lovely. There is so much horrible news at the moment it's nice just to appreciate the simple things in life like sitting in the garden. We went to a Royal Ascot party for opening day this week. Every year, our friends hire a bookie and a big TV screen and we all put little bets on the horses. Not as posh as the real thing but a nice idea. I would love to go to real Ascot and get all dressed up with an outrageous hat. Somehow Ascot and Wimbledon, just like strawberries and Pimm’s, seem to signal British Summer Time. There is usually lots of rain though, not this glorious sunshine. Even Glastonbury is said to be having sun this year and not the usual rain and mud. Like everyone else I've been so saddened by the awful fire at Grenfell Tower. It got me thinking about what would I want to save if I could. It's interesting isn't it that, apart from photos or videos, all the other stuff means nothing. The only thing that matters is family. My heart goes out to all those people. Let's hope that all the money raised can get to them soon. It's bad enough to suffer the grief or trauma they are going through without worrying about feeding their children or having a roof over their heads. And let's hope that every tower block in our country will have urgent fire safety checks. Have a good week everyone. Make every second count. The Press and Journal | Saturday, June 24, 2017