Latest news with #Woman&Home
Daily Mirror
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Fern Britton on looking for love and her This Morning return
TV favourite Fern Britton is loving life in Cornwall but admits sometimes she does miss having someone special She is back in great shape but Fern Britton is not hankering for a TV comeback or a man in her life. Instead she wants to continue to write bestselling books from her Cornwall home. At 67, it is now five years since her 20-year marriage to TV chef Phil Vickery ended, but Fern insists: 'I'm not looking for love. "I'm still a bit too wary of losing my liberty. There's nobody to run something past but, on the other hand, I think back to running things past people and it never really worked out, so why don't I just make my own decision? Then I'm the only person who can go, 'I f***ed up there.' 'I'm feeling pretty good [but] it would be foolish to say I feel spot on 100% of the time. Cats are great companions but there are days when I'm actually quite lonely because sitting, writing on your own is lonely, but it's good to admit it.' Fern is speaking to Woman&Home magazine to promote her 11th novel, A Cornish Legacy, which centres around Wilderhoo, a fictional 1,000-year-old Cornish house that has gone to rack and ruin. Sub consciously at least it must be slightly autobiographical as the main character was very successful in London and whose life has absolutely fallen apart. She comes down to Cornwall to take on this house and the house and the woman repair themselves together. On her own recent health improvements and weight loss, Fern says: 'People often wonder when you lose lots of weight whether you've done it naturally. And I can look at you and say, 'Yes, I have.' I had my shoulder replacement 18 months ago, and two-and-a-half years ago, when I saw the surgeon, he said, 'I'm going to totally replace your shoulder, I'll see you in a year.' I thought, 'I need to get my life back on track. I need to stop smoking, stop drinking, get eating under control and stop lying in bed feeling sorry for myself.' So I started the Couch to 5k, took about 80% of the sugar out of my life and started to think about what I was eating, which I had never done before. "As a child, I just couldn't stop eating sugar, so [I ended up with a] big sugar addiction. I never had the button that said, 'Stop eating, you've had enough.' Curiously, having three sensible meals a day – which everyone has told me [to do] for the last 60 years – actually worked!' The only thing failing her in terms of her health is not so visible when it comes to her youthful appearance. 'I'm getting more deaf. I first got hearing aids about 10 years ago [but] I just couldn't deal with it, then a year ago I thought, 'I'll try again.' I have to keep persevering and I'm wearing them today, but they drive me mad. I can't hear anybody any clearer because I can hear all the clatter in the room louder as well. "Taking them out is lovely, but I also know that [without them], I miss out on a lot of things and I mishear everything. I try to lip-read and that's very frustrating.' Fern's slim look makes her perfect for also heading back to the small screen and more TV work in the coming years if she headed back to London. She returned to This Morning last year for a series of shorts about the British Isles. And then there is also her own ITV show Fern Britton: Inside the Vet's. But it seems novel writing is what she wants to continue spending the majority of her time doing in 2025 in Cornwall. On This Morning she said of the films: 'They were fun but, no, I won't be going back to do This Morning. Never go back, that's my motto – for anything. Never look back, never go back. 'I don't honestly watch it. When you've been in that wonderful place, then you think, 'No, it's going to change,' and I don't want to.' She adds: 'My forefront is now being a writer and it's taken me a long time to accept that. Gosh, yes, I can say I'm an author now!' * A Cornish Legacy by Fern Britton is out on June 5. The July issue of woman&home is on sale May 29.
Wales Online
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
Gavin and Stacey's Ruth Jones admits 'I'm suffering' as she shares health 'wake-up call'
Gavin and Stacey's Ruth Jones admits 'I'm suffering' as she shares health 'wake-up call' Award-winning Gavin and Stacey actress Ruth Jones has shared a painful update, admitting she'd previously taken her health "for granted", ahead of appearing on BBC's Saturday Kitchen Ruth Jones is at the height of her powers as an actor, but she's beginning to feel the ravages of time (Image: Dave Benett,) Ruth Jones has an impressive list of achievements, with a fistful of prestigious awards including a couple of TV BAFTAs, an MBE, and even an honorary degree from the The Open University in Wales. But, at 58, the thing she's most grateful for is her health. "You don't know what you've got until it's gone," the Gavin and Stacey star told Woman & Home magazine. "I don't particularly practise gratitude, but often I get a wake-up call where I'll go, 'Thank goodness I can still do this.' "At the moment I'm suffering with my knees," she added, "I hadn't realised how much I take being able to walk down the street for granted." Ruth has been showered with awards for her work (Image: Dave Benett, Alan Chapman/) Ruth says she made the decision to start pursuing a healthier lifestyle at the beginning of 2010 after a particularly indulgent holiday. She recalled the significant moment, saying: "I came back from holiday - January 2010 - and we all overdo it on holiday, don't we? Something just clicked, I felt this is now or never, I wanted to make a positive change for me and I haven't looked back." Article continues below Rather than following strict diets, she focused on managing portion sizes and keeping an eye on what she was eating to make sure she didn't take on more calories than she was burning with exercise. She shed an impressive 4½ stone (Image: Mike Marsland, Mike Marsland/WireImagevia Getty Images ) Her dedication paid off as she dropped four and a half stone over a period of 22 months. Ruth reflected on her no-nonsense approach: "Although I have done loads of diets in my time I have never done it the old-fashioned way: taking in less calories than I was using." She took on a manageable goal of between 1,250 and 1,500 calories each day, significantly below the average recommended intake of 2,000 for women. This strategy played a crucial role in her slimming down to a size 12. Lately, that achievement has been eclipsed by her showbiz awards. Ruth had a heartfelt message for Gavin & Stacey finale co-creator James Corden, after the Nessa Jenkins star picked up a BAFTA award for her role earlier this month. Ruth hinted that she might be working with James Corden again (Image: Gareth Cattermole,) After thanking the Gavin and Stacey team as a whole, she singled out James in particular, saying: "The person I would like to thank most is my dear, dear, talented, lovely, kind, funny friend, James Corden, with whom I have shared this astonishing journey with for the past 17 years and without whom Nessa Shenessa Jenkins would simply not exist." In a hint that there might be more to come from their partnership, Ruth added: "I love you, James, I love writing with you, long may it continue." In a playful aside that came straight from her Gavin and Stacey role, Ruth went on, in character, saying: "I've won a BAFTA before, of course I have, in 1976. It was the Barry Arcade Fruity Technician Award and I was grateful for that but this, this is cracking." Article continues below Ruth is appearing on Saturday Kitchen this morning from 10am on BBC One and iPlayer.
Daily Mail
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Ruth Jones recalls feeling 'self-conscious' during photoshoots as stylists never provided outfits in her size before detailing her struggle with a health issue in candid new interview
Ruth Jones has recalled feeling 'self-conscious' during photoshoots amid her early career as stylists failed to provide clothes in her size. The actress and writer, 58, who starred in ITV comedy Fat Friends between 2000-2005, revealed in a new interview how the ordeal made her feel as she noted that the only clothes laid out for her were a size 16, despite her being a size 20 at the time. Meanwhile, Ruth discussed her struggle with a health issue that has made her realise that a walk down the street is something she takes for granted. Opening up about the fashion blunder during a candid chat with Woman & Home magazine, Ruth shared: 'I first started doing photo shoots about 20 years ago, I felt so self-conscious. 'I was probably a size 20, and on one shoot, the stylist only got size 16 clothes that didn't fit me. I think there was that mentality of, "A size 16 is large, so that will be fine." The co-writer and star of beloved sitcom Gavin and Stacey has maintained a healthy lifestyle over the years after previously stunning fans in 2011 when she revealed her incredible 4.5 stone weight loss. The actress and writer, 58, revealed how the ordeal made her feel as she noted that the only clothes laid out for her were a size 16, despite her being a size 20 at the time Despite her more positive approach to health, Ruth insists that diets and weight are very 'boring subjects' and remarked that people often set themselves 'ridiculous fitness ambitions' that can so easily be given up on. Elsewhere, Ruth opened up on her feelings of gratitude amid a problem with her knees, as she noted that one doesn't always know what they've got 'until it's gone.' She said: 'I don't particularly practise gratitude, but often I get a wake-up call where I'll go, "Thank goodness I can still do this." At the moment I'm suffering with my knees, and I hadn't realised how much I take being able to walk down the street for granted.' It comes as last month, Ruth ditched Barry Island for Liverpool as she arrived at the northern city to film Netflix 's Run Away. After starring in the final episode of Gavin and Stacey in December, the Welsh actress will now take on a new role for a Harlan Coben thriller. And Ruth seemed excited to get filming as she was spotted sporting a huge smile and waving her hands excitedly. For her scene, Ruth can be seen wearing a bright red cardigan, which she matched with her socks and layered under a green rain mac. The new twist-filled crime thriller is set to be another huge hit and will also star James Nesbitt, Minnie Driver, Alfred Enoch, Ellie de Lange and Lucian Msamati. The star has maintained a healthy lifestyle over the years after previously stunning fans in 2011 when she revealed her incredible 4.5 stone weight loss (pictured in November 2011) Elsewhere, Ruth opened up on her feelings of gratitude amid a problem with her knees, as she noted that one doesn't always know what they've got 'until it's gone' The eight-episode series, based on the bestselling book, follows Simon (played by James Nesbitt) as he searches for his daughter Paige (Ellie de Lange). Ruth will star as private investigator Elena Ravenscroft who is looking for a missing young man. Harlan told Netflix's Tudum: 'Run Away is about family - about what we will do to keep our family intact, what secrets we keep within our family, and what secrets we keep as a family.' He added: 'Every time you walk past the house, there's a whole universe that goes on behind that door and none of us have a clue what it is.' Run Away comes following the success of Harlan's thriller Fool Me Once in 2024, starring Michelle Keegan in a lead role. The show became the most-watched series for the first half of the year, racking up an impressive 108 million views. Elsewhere, almost 20million viewers sat down to watch Gavin and Stacey on Christmas Day, making it one of the BBC's most-watched scripted dramas ever. Viewers had been waiting for five years to learn the fate of the BBC sitcom's beloved characters and see if Smithy had accepted Nessa's proposal. The final episode was hailed 'perfect' by viewers, who were left in tears as the long-running show finally aired its last episode after 17 years. The series, which debuted back in 2007 after being created by stars James Corden and Ruth , concluded with on/off lovers Smithy and Nessa finally declaring their love for one another and tying the knot, but not without a few hiccups along the way. Despite ruling out a return to the series, James has said he wants to work with Ruth again. He said: 'We don't know if we have another idea in us but I can honestly say that if we didn't attempt to try and even explore the idea of writing together then I'd be so disappointed.'
