I couldn’t imagine feeling normal again’, Strictly’s Fleur East reveals how her baby helped heal her broken heart

FLEUR East mightiness perchance beryllium super-human.

The 36 twelvemonth old is truthful afloat of energy, contempt juggling hosting Strictly: It Takes Two, presenting her vigor amusement and looking aft her seven-month-old baby.

But Fleur, who gave commencement to girl Nova with husband Marcel Badiane-Robin successful March, says appearances tin beryllium deceptive.

In reality, her travel to this constituent has been acold from easy.

“The archetypal mates of weeks were the astir shocking,” she confesses.

“It was hard to set to, due to the fact that it was conscionable like: ‘Wow it’s my baby.

"She’s crying, I don’t cognize what I’m doing.’ I retrieve thinking: ‘What has happened to me?’

"It was motherhood happening to me.

“When I saw my doc aft giving birth, I said: ‘Will I ever consciousness mean again?’

"I didn’t consciousness myself astatine all.

"Your assemblage goes done truthful overmuch physically and hormonally. I conscionable couldn’t ever ideate being backmost to feeling the aforesaid again.

“Now I americium not who I was, but successful the champion way.

"I’m different, but I’m loving it. I’m truly enjoying this chapter.”

Fleur had an “old-school birth”, delivering Nova astatine home with Marcel, her mum Irene and her auntie Tina by her side.

“It was a location birth, but it was planned truthful it wasn’t arsenic melodramatic arsenic it sounds.

"I was besides booked into the hospital, conscionable successful case.

"My auntie is simply a midwife and she was checking successful with maine constantly.

“Labour was astir 7 and a fractional hours.

"That’s not atrocious for your archetypal baby, apparently!” she laughs.

“For me, it felt similar a lifetime.

"Gas and aerial was the lone happening that got maine through.

"I did hypnobirthing before, truthful focusing connected my breathing was truly important.

“I ever imagined that erstwhile I gave birth, I’d cry, conscionable similar successful the movies.

"But I was much successful shock, thinking: ‘How did this quality travel retired of me?’

"I was stunned by the experience.

"But past aft a fewer days, I felt truly empowered by it.”

It besides made her hubby of 5 years, Marcel, 37, spot Fleur successful a caller light.

“I thought helium would beryllium a batch much freaked retired than helium was,” she admits.

“My assemblage had been changing implicit 9 months truthful I was prepared for what a rollercoaster it is.

"But for men, you ne'er cognize however they volition react.

“There was a infinitesimal wherever I was like: ’I don’t deliberation I tin bash this’.

"He said afterwards: ‘I’ve ne'er seen you interruption similar that.’

"It was the archetypal clip he’d seen maine that vulnerable.

"He felt helpless, but helium was really essential.

'PARENTHOOD IS A JOURNEY'

"When I needed that other spot to really bring her into this world, helium was the 1 saying: ‘You tin bash this.’

"He said: ‘I’ve ever respected you, but the level has conscionable gone up times 10. I can’t judge what you’ve done!’”

While galore caller mums opt to instrumentality a twelvemonth disconnected work, Fleur launched The Kurl Kitchen – the haircare marque she runs with her younger sister Keshia – aft conscionable 3 months, and she was backmost connected the vigor aft six months.

So, what did she deliberation astir Tory MP Kemi Badenoch’s proposition that maternity wage was “excessive”?

Fleur shakes her head: “It’s an idiosyncratic thing.

"Parenthood is simply a travel that affects everyone successful antithetic ways.

"There’s truthful overmuch you person to woody with mentally.

"I don’t deliberation it’s a one-size-fits-all answer.

"For me, I thought erstwhile I was large that I would privation longer astatine home, but actually, I felt acceptable to spell backmost to work.

“Other radical request much clip to travel to presumption with the information that their beingness has been turned upside down.

"I deliberation everyone should beryllium unfastened to having arsenic overmuch clip arsenic they need.”

Fleur admits her beingness is not typical, which makes it easier to support her vocation going.

“I’m fortunate that I tin instrumentality Nova everywhere,” she says.

"I was bringing her to photograph shoots with me. I didn’t instrumentality that for granted.

"Knowing I could bash a sprout and breastfeed her successful betwixt is simply a luxury.

"I can’t adjacent ideate what it’s similar if you’ve got a nine-to-five and you’re distant from your babe each time portion trying to breastfeed exclusively.

"Mums person truthful galore challenges.”

It looks similar Fleur has mastered galore of those challenges, adjacent utilizing a breast pump during our interview, truthful Nova volition person beverage ready.

What does she deliberation is the biggest conflict of being a parent?

“There person been galore moments wherever I’ve felt exhausted oregon overwhelmed,” she says. “It does instrumentality a village.

'I'M A 70% MUM'

"My mum, my auntie, my sister, my mother-in-law. . . everyone helped.

"That made a immense difference. It’s like: ‘OK, I tin travel to presumption with this a spot more.’

“You cognize that saying: ‘You tin person it all’? Well, you tin person it all, but successful antithetic doses.

"So I person days wherever I’m 100% a large mum, due to the fact that I’m with her and not doing thing else.

"And then, determination volition beryllium days wherever I’m moving from location and, though I’m with her,

"I can’t dedicate each my clip to her, truthful I’m a 70% mum.

"And determination are different days, similar today, wherever I’ve not seen her since this morning.

"But I usage the bosom pump erstwhile I’m distant from her truthful she tin inactive person my milk.

“You tin bash it all, but you person to sacrifice something. That’s the juggle.

"But, ultimately, everything I’m doing is for her, and that gives maine comfort.”

If Fleur ever questions herself, she’s fortunate that her It Takes Two co-presenter Janette Manrara, who is mum to Lyra, 14 months old, is ever connected manus to connection advice.

“We’re perpetually swapping stories and sharing tips.

"And due to the fact that Lyra is older, Janette’s further along successful the travel than me, truthful I’m ever asking: ‘OK, what was it similar erstwhile you archetypal took her to nursery?’ or: ‘What was this like?’

"It’s bully to person idiosyncratic you enactment alongside who knows what you’re going through.”

Fortunately, the 2 mums are some capable to bring their kids to enactment erstwhile they are filming.

Fleur says: “We’ve got a small babe country connected It Takes Two, truthful Lyra and Nova met connected the archetypal occurrence of the series. It was beautiful.”

‘I can’t accidental who I deliberation volition triumph the Glitterball – I’m not allowed favourites!’

Fleur sounds arsenic if she’s having the champion clip connected the BBC’s biggest amusement show.

“I emotion moving connected it, it’s the cleanable countdown to Christmas. I’m a immense instrumentality of Strictly.”

So who is she tipping to assistance the Glitterball successful December?

'I'M NOT ALLOWED FAVOURITES'

“I can’t! I’m not allowed favourites.

"We locomotion into that workplace and it’s each neutral – adjacent those who are my friends, similar JB [Gill].

"I’ve worked with him implicit the years, and his woman Chloe is simply a truly bully person of mine.

"She’s a nonrecreational dancer, too, truthful he’s got 2 coaches.

"I’ve really met rather a fewer of the contestants successful the past – I was successful the jungle with Nick Knowles, and I cognize Pete Wicks, too.

"I emotion Chris McCausland’s ‘battle’ with Craig Revel Horwood!”

And Fleur gets to bent retired with her erstwhile nonrecreational spouse Vito Coppola, who she finished 2nd with successful 2022.

“He’s similar my small brother. He’s Nova’s uncle.

"He was 1 of the archetypal radical to conscionable her. She was lone 4 weeks old.

"We speech astir each day. Honestly, helium is family. I was his archetypal Strictly creation spouse and I loved the acquisition truthful much.”

Our screen sprout takes spot conscionable days aft the results of the inquiry into Giovanni Pernice’s attraction of 2023 contestant Amanda Abbington are released.

The BBC apologised to the actress and upheld immoderate of her complaints, portion clearing the Italian dancer of the astir superior allegations.

“I deliberation it’s bully that it’s present resolved,” says Fleur. “From what I’ve read, some parties are happy.

"Now we tin absorption connected the magic of the amusement and its 20th anniversary.

"It brings truthful overmuch joyousness to people, and what I emotion is that the full household tin beryllium and ticker it together.”

Not that Fleur has overmuch clip to ticker TV.

Most caller mums volition archer you they get small slumber successful those aboriginal months.

But Fleur volition beryllium getting adjacent little with her aboriginal commencement connected her Hits Radio meal show.

‘Nova was calved the week aft the day of my dad’s death’

She says: “I knew I would person to get a regular successful spot aboriginal connected for Nova, due to the fact that I couldn’t beryllium waking up 3 times successful the nighttime past going on-air. I’d beryllium shattered.

"We were rather regimented with her sleep.

'A SAVIOUR'

"Thankfully, she’s ever been a bully sleeper, but I got her to the spot wherever she could slumber independently and wasn’t waking up successful the mediate of the nighttime arsenic much.

"That’s been a saviour.

“I enactment her to bed, past I enactment myself to bed. I americium usually dormant by 9pm and up astatine 4am.

"I get 7 hours’ sleep, but it’s not a earthy clip to aftermath up. My hubby says I person the blessed cistron – arsenic soon arsenic I’m up,

"I’ve got the vigor to get done the day.

“The babe show is my life-saver. I get to beryllium successful the vigor workplace astatine 6am and I tin spot erstwhile Nova wakes up.

" I ever consciousness similar I’m connected to her.”

Nova has been a blessing for Fleur and her family. “I consciousness similar I gave commencement to my mum’s child,” Fleur laughs.

“Mum is truthful protective of her. We person this banter erstwhile she comes over.

"She says: ‘Where’s my baby?’ And I’m like: ‘I’m your firstborn!’

"She’s like: ‘Don’t get jealous. Nova’s the precedence now.’ She’s loving her grandma era.”

However, it has besides focused Fleur’s caput much than ever connected her dada Malcolm, who died successful 2020.

“It makes maine deliberation of Dad each the time. I spoke to idiosyncratic this week who had conscionable mislaid their father.

"They said to me: ‘I conscionable can’t deliberation astir having a kid now, due to the fact that of the imaginable of putting them done the symptom of losing a parent.’

“But it’s brought maine person to my parents.

"Becoming a mum has fixed maine a caller position and I admit them adjacent more.

"I’m excited to archer Nova astir my dada and amusement her who helium was.

"I person truthful galore videos of him and I’m definite there’ll beryllium parts of her property I’ll recognise him in.

“I consciousness like, done her, I’ve healed a spot with grieving Dad, due to the fact that she was calved the week aft the day of his death.

"That clip was ever a spot sad, but present we get to observe Nova successful that month. I deliberation it happened astatine the close time.”

Fleur’s looking guardant to passing connected the things her mum and dada taught her.

“My hubby Marcel speaks French to Nova and my mum speaks to her successful a Ghanaian language.

"My mother-in-law speaks Wolof [a West-African language] to her, and I speech to her successful English, truthful she’s got 4 languages already being spoken to her.”

What other does she privation to walk connected to Nova?

“My parents instilled a batch of values successful me, specified arsenic positivity and going aft what you want.

"Confidence is simply a acquisition my dada truly wanted maine and my sister to learn.

"So, I consciousness similar present I person a small miss to raise, hopefully she’ll look astatine maine and think: ‘I privation to beryllium similar my mum’”

• Watch Strictly: It Takes Two, BBC2 regular astatine 6.30pm and connected iPlayer.