Fearless, fabulous FERN

Since the end of her second marriage, Fern Britton’s home has been a sleepy Cornish village near Padstow.

But when we catch up with the TV presenter and author on a four-day trip to London, she’s relishing reacquainting herself with city life.

‘I went to the theatre last night to see Cabaret with Eddie Redmayne, who was stunning. Tonight I’m out with a girlfriend for dinner, then tomorrow I’m meeting four girls I go cycling with,’ smiles Fern, 64, suddenly looking playful. ‘If you hear someone’s stripped naked down Tottenham Court Road, that’ll be me!’

She’s alluding to two stories divulged in the hair and make-up chair. Firstly, the time she went nude sea swimming in broad daylight (‘It was a quiet little cove – then I saw some people on the cliff and thought, oh, b****r!’). Then there’s her partiality to a spontaneous cocktail.

‘At a social occasion, when someone says “Let’s have margaritas”, I’m the one [who says] “Oh, yeah, f*** it”,’ she laughs, describing a night out in 2019 on tour with . ‘It was 4am and I was in a bar