In Conversation - Rochelle Humes

Claudia: Welcome! Thank you so much for joining us this evening.

Rochelle: You are so welcome. You’ve got me out of dinner. We’ve just ordered a curry, so, I’m happy.

Claudia: It’s such a pleasure to chat each week to these amazingly accomplished women, and obviously, given your many accomplishments, you’re clearly not work shy, how would you describe what you do, what you are?

Rochelle: Oh my gosh, um, I’m not sure you know, I think…

Claudia: Well, you are a presenter, you’re a singer, you’re a performer, I guess you’re an entrepreneur…

Rochelle: Yeah, so, a little bit of everything, I just believe you just gotta go for it and that’s what I decide to do with everything really. I mean, my day job is a TV host, a television presenter, and obviously I have my own business now so that’s sort of taken up a lot of time, but apart from that, just winging it, like everyone else really.

Claudia: So, you’re obviously a curious person, because you’re not following like a linear path, has that always been the case?

Rochelle: No, there’s no format with me. I just have these ideas and these passions and these things that I think ‘you know what, that’s exactly what I want to do.’ I’m all in, I’m all or nothing. And when I’ve got an idea, it will eat away at me until I’ve achieved that and made it happen.

Claudia: So, when I was doing my research for talking to you this evening, the thing that kept coming up was what a nice person you are. I think that an awful lot of people have, you know, a bad rap for being a bit of a diva, but I couldn’t find any dirt!

Rochelle: Awe, that’s so nice. You didn’t dig with my husband. Yeah, he’d have given you some dirt.

Claudia: So, you obviously can’t make a conscious decision to be a nice person, that’s just something that you are, but at the same time, would you say that there was a decision to use your platform to be a courteous and super aware person?

Rochelle:  You know what, I really believe that in our industry, we’re all people that got super lucky. And, yes, we work hard and yes we graft, the same as everybody. I just think we’ve not got a superpower; we’re not saving the world and I believe that everyone’s equal and that’s just the way it is.

Claudia: I want to know, do you have any tips for us mere mortals, having said that you’re a mere mortal, for spinning all those plates? Do you have an extra hour in your day?

Rochelle: Wouldn’t that just be amazing if you could just go ‘you know what, today I’m up against it time wise, I could do with two more hours.’ That would just be brilliant wouldn’t it? Do you know what I just, I’ve learnt to have to be really organized. But, every mum I know, every woman I know, because no offence men, if you’ve got shiz to do you can get it done. And I really believe that.

Claudia: You’ve also been in the public eye since you were really, a child with S Club Juniors. You probably almost don’t remember anything different now. But is there anything that fazes you or do you just sort of take it all in your stride being in the public eye?

Rochelle:  Yeah, as I’ve gotten older, I really care less what people think, and not in a way of like I don’t care about people and their opinions, I mean of what they think of me. Because, I just really think ‘do you know what, you can’t, as long as I’ve got… I’m making my kids proud, I’m doing right by them and my family and friends and my husband.’ They’re the opinions that I care about, the opinions that would keep me up at night.

Claudia: Did you have someone that you kind of looked up to who was on the tele, or in film or on the stage who was your icon that you were like ‘I really wanna be…’

Rochelle: Well, I remember the Spice Girls coming out and being like ‘gasp they are my people.’ I remember being obsessed with them. I had everything like the merch, I loved them so much. Sometimes I just think, I laugh to myself like, you know, Emma (Bunton) invited… Marvin DJ’d for her 40th birthday, we were at her birthday and had a really nice night and I was like ‘oh my god, if I could have told the younger me that you’d be like dancing with Emma Bunton at her birthday party,’ I would have probably wet myself.

Claudia: So, I want to ask you about clothes. Do you have a sort of style that you would like describe, do you have a way of dressing that you’re like ‘oh, I’m a real tomboy,’ or a I love a dress or does it change like a costume?

Rochelle: Yeah, I kind of… apart from today, I’m really quite neutral, I like things that fit well and I like, if it’s beige I’ll like it, basically. If it’s camel colored, if it’s a tan color, that’s the palette I really love.

Claudia: So, If there was a fire, what’s the thing that you would be grabbing because you’d like ‘oh my god, I can’t live without this one piece?’

Rochelle: I have got such a bag and shoe obsession. When we moved house recently, we had a removal firm and I was like ‘nobody is going into my room where I keep my things.’ You know? I’m so like, and the hormones came out…  

Claudia: Protective of them. 

Rochelle: Yeah! And Marv was like ‘no, these people have come to help us.’ And I went ‘no, no, no I know, but I have to  know where all of my things are at all times.’ I’m just very… I wanted to wrap it all up myself, you know, that was my thing. My babies.

Claudia: Well, you know what, no matter how pregnant you are, a bag isn’t gonna let you down, it’s never gonna not fit. 

Rochelle: This is it! This is what I keep saying! Even a shoe, your feet swell. But, a bag, a bag will always have your back.

Claudia: And, you also have a much more tolerant marriage than mine, because you’ve been doing The Hit List with Marvin, and you said that you’ve just done the next series of that, is that right?

Rochelle:  Yeah, we’ve just taped the next series. It’s actually quite nice working with each other, I mean, maybe not all the time… cause you’ve not got to get to know anyone new. We know how each other works, we know each other inside out and it kind of takes away any awkwardness of co-hosting with someone.

Claudia: And, do the kids love to see that, that you’re working together as well?

Rochelle: Yeah, I just think they think it’s normal. It’s funny isn’t it, I remember when I went to parents’ evening, the teacher said to me that my eldest said to one of the other kids, ‘what channel is your mummy on?’

Claudia: So obviously the big project moving forward is going to be your baby boy. But, is there like a master plan for your career or are you one of those seize the moment, just go with the flow kind of people?

Rochelle: I do like to work towards something. I find that really helpful to have a goal and, just to get myself like ‘ok, this is what I’m working towards,’ so I always have a goal in mind. But, I also think, that’s the beauty of life. You don’t know what’s around the corner. So, it is really nice to wing it a bit. So, they’ll be certain things that I’ll go ‘ok,’ they’ll be a couple things that this is what in five years or whatever, this is what I want to have achieved. Then, the rest of it is life, let’s see what happens.

Claudia: Well, that’s the best way to be isn’t it, and you’ve achieved so much already. Listen, we’re really, really grateful to you for giving us your time and we wish you every, every luck and pain-relief happiness with the birth of the baby. Thank you for answering all of our questions, we really, really loved having you.

Rochelle: No, thank you. I hope we got through everyone’s questions. I know we missed some here, but we got a lot didn’t we?

Claudia: Have a lovely evening, enjoy your curry!

Rochelle: Oh, I will.