Worried about nearing 60? No fear, says comfy Fern Britton
TELEVISION PRESENTER Fern Britton has insisted that ageing does not frighten her and has helped her in her battle with depression.
The former This Morning host, 58, said she still feels like she is 26 and has no qualms about approaching 60.
She told Good Housekeeping: “In my head, I am still 26! But ageing doesn’t frighten me. I think it will be all right. We all have our time here, and it’s fun. We are at the party and enjoying ourselves, but soon we will have to go back home.”
Britton, who has been married to celebrity chef Phil Vickery for 15 years, has been open about her battle with depression and said that growing older has helped.
She said: “I think age is helping, funnily enough. I am quietly sitting on a really comfortable sofa now and every day I am just getting more snuggled into it and life is really good.
“Phil always brings me a cup of tea in the morning. Those are the things that give me real pleasure. I can see and feel the joy in life more now than I used to.”
Asked whether the bias over older women on TV is getting worse, she said: “No one gives a stuff! I didn’t expect to be working at this age, but if they are going to keep giving me work, I will do it.
“I know it will end, but my time in the sun has been great. I did 10 really good years at This Morning. You imagine you could do another 10, but there may be people wondering how they are going to get rid of you. They could be thinking we are not running an old people’s home!
“It’s important not to be afraid of change. You have to adapt really fast, whether or not you are scared. Things generally get even better.”
She added: “In general, women are judged in a competition that they haven’t entered. If I’m any inspiration at all, I would say: ‘do what you wish, look they way you want and be the way you are’. Don’t think you have to look better, have the best haircut, have a proper car and a pay rise.
“Just ask yourself, am I happy? That’s the only thing you need. Do I have nice friends, do my family love me, am I happy? That’s it!”
The full interview appears in the June issue of Good Housekeeping, on sale on May 3.