Claudia Winkleman has candidly expressed her anxiety about the fickle nature of her career as a presenter, despite her consistent success. The 52-year-old star confessed to understanding if the day comes when producers tell her they are “done with her”, stating emphatically: “I cannot believe my luck.”
“I always panic because [I’m] freelance,” she explained. “I read out loud on telly and somebody suddenly might turn around and go, ‘We are done with her’.”
“And, that’s OK, they can, and I give them full permission and I get it, I’d be like, ‘byesy bye, night night, thank you, I’ve had a lovely run’.”
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The seasoned host has also entertained other interests over the years, turning to writing and pondering a master’s degree, or even taking an embroidery course, reports the Mirror.
But for now she remains in demand with high-profile gigs such as hosting Strictly Come Dancing, The Traitors and The Piano. However, with the third series of The Traitors hitting screens imminently, she recounted a reflective moment she had with her husband Kris Thykier.
During the first season of the BBC show, she mused: “[I said] I’m obsessed by it, but I am wearing red fingerless gloves, a cape and I’m talking about people being murdered. And, I think it might be over.
Claudia Winkleman told bosses not to bring the show back, despite its success
(Image: Lia Toby/Getty Images for BFI)
“I imagine it’s over, like I’ve had a good run and then people started liking it.” She was pleasantly shocked by the positive response from viewers, including some of her “heroes”, like Kathy Burke and Russell T Davies.
Despite this, Claudia confessed that she had advised the show’s bosses against renewing it for a second series. Speaking on Gabby Logan’s The Mid Point podcast, she said: “I said to Kate, I said to our bosses, I was like, ‘we’ve done it once and it did well, but I don’t think we should do it again’, to which they just leaned over and took my temperature [and said] ‘we’re doing it again’.”
The show has since won numerous awards, including two National Television Awards for Most Popular Reality Competition. Regarding the new series, she added: “I don’t know if this one will do well, series three, I don’t know,” and in light of its success, she stated: “We don’t want to take it for granted.”