‘It was like I’d had an affair!
Fern Britton opens up about her rows and rucks with husband Phil Vickery
In the spotlight Fern Britton & Phil Vickery
They famously met and fell in love 18 years ago on the set of Ready, Steady, Cook, and now Fern Britton and husband Phil Vickery have teamed up on telly once more, on ITV’S new daytime show Culinary Genius. ‘It was like being on a date,’ gushed Fern of their on-screen reunion.
Although the couple are clearly happy to be working together, there has been some disruption in the harmony of the Vickery household lately. Fern, 59, explained that hubby Phil, 55, was not happy about the tattoo of a cross she’d had done in Jersualem as part of a BBC documentary. ‘My kids thought it was great, but my husband was a bit ‘Grrrr,’ she said.
And it’s hardly surprising he reacted this way – because he was already angry about her first tattoo, a butterfly on her stomach which she had done in 2011!
‘He wouldn’t speak to me after I did it,’ Fern said. ‘He went, ‘I thought I knew you!’ It was like I’d had an affair.’
Of course, the couple kissed and made up, but it’s not the first time Fern and Phil have spoken about their spats, with Fern confessing that her behaviour once caused him to move to the spare room!
‘The biggest row Phil and I had was when I first put fake tan on,’ said Fern about her time on Strictly Come Dancing in 2012. ‘Being a chef, he is very sensitive to smells and he can’t stand it. We didn’t speak for four days. I have convinced him it’s an essential part of the Strictly experience and he will be sleeping in the spare room on spray-tan days.’
But with these unlikely rules, Fern and Phil have managed to buck the trend of celebrity marriages and will soon celebrate almost two decades together. Here we chart the couple’s ups and downs…