Gloria Hunniford reveals 'saviour' after daughter and husband's deaths 'crushed' her

Gloria Hunniford has interviewed elder royalty and immoderate of the astir celebrated names successful Hollywood past but it is her genius astatine relating to mean radical which has secured her presumption arsenic a nationalist treasure.

The acclaimed broadcaster has nary involvement successful retiring. Work is not conscionable a passion; it is present a “saviour” and a solace.

Her cherished husband, Stephen Way, died successful August. “In my head, enactment is my harmless place,” she explains, saying it fills her caput with “something other different than grief and sadness”.

Gloria has helped Britons speech astir loss. Her beloved daughter, erstwhile Blue Peter presenter Caron Keating, died successful 2004, 7 years aft being diagnosed with cancer.

“Losing a kid was conscionable truthful crushing I can’t adjacent picture it,” she says. “And past to suffer my husband... We were unneurotic 30 years and joined for 25 of those fabulous years.”

She has written books celebrating her daughter’s courageousness and describing however the household coped with her passing, and she talks astir Stephen and Caron with gratitude, joyousness and pride.

“I deliberation of them each the clip for 100,000 reasons,” she says.

Gloria, who has presented Songs of Praise, looks guardant to 1 time being successful their institution erstwhile more.

She says: “I judge that I volition spot Caron and Stevie again... I privation to judge this isn’t the end. And the older you get, the much I consciousness similar that. I bask beingness and I don’t privation it to end.”

The resilience of her faith, nurtured during her days increasing up successful Portadown successful Northern Ireland, came arsenic a astonishment to some.

She remembers: “A batch of radical got successful interaction aft Caron died and said, ‘Has that truly shaken and ruined your faith?’ I went, ‘No, it hasn’t. Because I really request my religion adjacent more.’”

Stephen and her shared an impulsive property If she suggested a drawback play successful Dublin, helium would respond: “Right, let’s go!”

“I ever thought Stevie and I would turn aged together,” she says. “Like, truly old, into our nineties."

Gloria has elemental proposal for others who are dealing with bereavement.

“Anything that takes your caput distant from your grief for fractional an hour, fractional a time is helpful.”

She is looking guardant to returning to wherever she spent her puerility for a documentary and is excited astatine the re-release of her medium A Taste of Hunni.

Though famed for her years arsenic a Radio 2 big and arsenic the presenter of programmes including Holiday, Rip-Off Britain and Pebble Mill, it was arsenic a vocalist that Gloria archetypal strode into the spotlight.

Her begetter ran a paper advertizing section by time but astatine nighttime performed arsenic a magician. From the property of seven, Gloria joined him arsenic a vocalist and they were sometimes retired 5 nights a week.

“It was a large experience,” she says. “It taught maine however to basal up connected a signifier and speech to an audience, and I got 7 and sixpence a night, which to a kid past successful the precocious 1940s was a fortune.”

They toured religion halls, schools and sometimes performance venues.

“All the section radical would crook up due to the fact that that was the entertainment,” she explains. “There was nary telly.”

A BBC interrogation astir an aboriginal medium led to a occupation connection – conscionable arsenic the Troubles were unfolding successful Northern Ireland.

She remembers her caller brag taking her to the newsroom.

“What bash you see?” helium asked.

“I spot a batch of men conscionable pounding connected their typewriters.”

“Remember,” helium told her. “As a pistillate you’re not coming successful present to bash recipes and knitting and sewing and things.

“Remember, you’re arsenic bully arsenic immoderate bloke successful this country and you’ll beryllium connected the streets of Northern Ireland doing bombs, bullets and barricades conscionable similar them.”

She says she ne'er saw herself arsenic a trailblazer.

“I wasn’t reasoning of being immoderate benignant of pioneer astatine all. I conscionable wanted the career.”

She excelled and became the archetypal pistillate to person her ain amusement connected Radio 2.

In her younger years she was a self-described “movie fanatic” and arsenic a broadcaster she loved interviewing the “wonderful” Audrey Hepburn and Charlton Heston. Meeting Doris Day was peculiarly meaningful.

“I wanted to beryllium Doris Day erstwhile I was increasing up due to the fact that of the singing, due to the fact that of the apparel and, eventually, erstwhile I was aged enough, due to the fact that of the men,” she confesses.

In 2021 she interviewed Camilla, the then-Duchess of Cornwall to people World Osteoporosis Day. The aboriginal Queen described her mother’s achy struggles with the bony disease; connected 1 juncture a hug from a person caused a bony to break.

Gloria is present an ambassador for the Royal Osteoporosis Society and afloat supports the charity’s Better Bones run with the Sunday Express truthful regular checks for the information volition beryllium disposable successful each parts of the nation.

She is passionate astir bony health, peculiarly aft a nasty tennis mishap which earnestly injured a shoulder.

“I went caput implicit heels successful the nett and I could perceive the bones cracking,” she remembers.

Gloria encourages radical to bash load-bearing exercises and she takes calcium “religiously” to fortify her bones.

She delights successful her household – and treasures memories of witnessing Caron’s sons being calved – and is the writer of Glorious Grandparenting: Having the Time of Your Life.

“Nobody truly understands however overmuch you’re going to bask grandchildren until you person them,” she says.

But showbusiness has mislaid nary of its sparkle for this seasoned performer.

In 2022 she relished appearing connected The Masked Singer, disguised arsenic the “snow leopard” and singing Shirley Bassey’s Big Spender.

And erstwhile asked if she would similar to sing earlier an assemblage again, she says: “Well, present that my grounds is being re-released I mightiness person to. Mightn’t I?”

If she does instrumentality to the signifier erstwhile again she tin beryllium assured of the roar of the crowd.