Jo Wood 's 5-word statement on stepson Jesse's split from Fearne Cotton

Daily Mirror

12-07-2025

Jo Wood opens up on stepson Jesse Wood's split, why she's flying the flag for older women - and how you can 'pick yourself up and start again' at any age, as she knows all too well
Since turning 70 in March, model, TV personality and health entrepreneur Jo Wood is embarking on a new chapter — as she adds novelist to her lengthy list of credentials. Inspired to write her debut book after going on a date, as she exclusively tells OK!, it unleashed a passion for writing that Jo never knew she had.
Drawing on her own experiences of heartbreak and divorce for The Resurrection Of Flo, the ex-wife of Rolling Stones rocker Ronnie says it's given her a new lease of life — and she hopes it inspires others to do the same. 'It's a story really for women to be able to pick themselves up whatever age you are, even if you'd be 70 or 80, to pick yourself up and get back out there again,' Jo explains.
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'I bumped into a girlfriend I hadn't seen for years, and she turned around to me and said she'd just split with her husband. She said, 'My life's over now.' I said, 'No, it's not. Are you crazy?' I was 53 when my husband walked out on me. I said, 'It's not over.' 'And another thing, my mum, when she was getting old, she said to me that as she got older, she became invisible. I said, 'Mum, you are not invisible. I want to show you can do anything at any time.''
And Jo is doing exactly that. She's already thinking about book number two in between running her businesses Jo Wood Organics and Longevity Wellness and being a devoted grandmother to 10. Jo packs a punch in more ways than one, as she speaks to us fresh out of a boxing class. So has she got a mean right hook? 'I have actually,' she smiles. 'I've been doing it for years.'
The sparring practice came in handy when she had a run-in with a drunk stranger, who came off second best. 'Years ago, some drunk guy grabbed a hat off my daughter and I just took off and ran after him, grabbed the hat and tripped him over at the same time,' Jo recalls. 'He fell on the floor. I said, 'Don't f**k with me and my daughter.' I was so furious. I wonder if I could do that now? Of course I could!'
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There's certainly no writing Jo off. With the air of an eternal optimist, she has brushed off hard times to come out the other side smiling. Jo's colourful life has inspired parts of her book — which was sparked by a first date. 'I never ever thought about writing a novel,' Jo admits.
'I'll tell you what happened. I went on a date with some guy and he told me about the break-up of his marriage, and I walked out of that restaurant and I walked down the road and I thought to myself, 'That would make such a great story.' And that was it.'
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From there, Jo started building up a picture of her main character, Flo. Writing notes on her phone, she eventually got up to 55,000 words and the beginnings of her book were born. So, is Flo anything like Jo? 'She's not as silly as me, but she does make lots of mistakes like I have,' Jo laughs.
It wasn't just Jo's own life that threw up ideas for the book — stories from her friends also made it in there. I asked my girlfriends to give me a story that I could use as inspiration for my book. I went, 'Did you really just tell me that? Can I use it for the book?' A couple are in there.'
Speaking of romantic ups and downs, mum-of-three Jo — who has daughter Leah, 46, and sons Jamie, 50, and Tyrone, 41 — was surprised by her stepson Jesse Wood's split from his presenter wife Fearne Cotton. The pair announced the end of their marriage last December, with both going on to find new partners.
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'I didn't see it coming,' admits Jo. 'You don't know what their life is like behind closed doors.' However, Jo says Jesse, 48, is 'crazy' about his new love, 39- year-old former Made In Chelsea star Gemma Gregory — while wishing Fearne, 43, the best.
'You know she's got a new life, I hope she's very happy,' Jo says. 'Jesse's doing great. He's got a new girlfriend and he is crazy about her. That happened in a flash! He's good. I'm really happy.' The family has form for maintaining a good relationship with exes — Jo and Ronnie, 78, being the prime example. They are often pictured together alongside their children and Ronnie's third wife Sally.
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Jo takes her hat off to Ronnie's longevity with the Rolling Stones — and says she believes it's down to women carrying the stress for them. 'They don't have any stress, the boys,' she muses. 'You know what they've got, they've got that music, the vibrations and the music, which I think is really good for them. Keeps them young.'
Jo says she's flying the flag for older women exploring their passions in later life. 'If you look at leaders of the world, Donald Trump is in his seventies, Mick Jagger is still prancing around the stage at 81,' she vents. 'Why aren't we seeing more women do the same? We live longer than men anyway. We should still be creative way into our eighties, nineties even.'
Twice-married Jo says her love life has been put on hold while she focuses on her book. 'I occasionally go out on a date, but last year I was doing this book, I didn't want to go on any dates,' she says. 'And, at the moment, I've got so much on. I don't have time and it will only be a distraction.
'I know what I'm like. I go head over heels if I am into something. But I do hope to find somebody, still, but who knows. I am also very attached to my single life. I like being on my own. 'Right now, I like how I know everything I have, I don't have to pick up anybody else's clothes, do anybody's washing, wonder what they want to eat. But it would be nice if I could share it with somebody.'