Christmas with Amanda Holden⛄️

She’s a super busy Showbiz Mama, who juggles a jam-packed family schedule and still manages to keep Simon Cowell in check on Britain’s Got Talent!
Now Amanda Holden has teamed up with TK Maxx to keep us in check and indeed make sure we are checking in on our neighbours this Christmas in their fabulous new campaign.
Here, we talk mistletoe, motherhood, mince pies and more with yummy mother-of-two Amanda.

Q. Congrats on the Love Your Neighbours campaign! Tell us about a time when your work colleagues have surprised you and been particularly good neighbours on your shows…

A. Well my “neighbour” on Britain’s Got Talent is Alesha Dixon and we are always there for each other and support each other in everything we do. Alesha and I talk about everything from her asking for baby tips when she was pregnant to how to deal with Simon on the show! And Holly Willoughby was fantastic when I took over from her on This Morning, I went down to see her Philip a few times before I started on This Morning and Holly gave me some great tips and advice, as did Philip.

Q. How will you be spending Christmas?

A. For the first time ever we won’t be with my family and we’re actually spending it with Chris’s best friends and we’re having lunch out so for the first time I won’t have to cook. I am doing a big pre-Christmas dinner with all my family next weekend though where we’ll exchange present. And then on Boxing Day there will be 16 of us and loads of kids which will be great for Hollie and Lexi as they’ll have a load of kids to play with when they normally just have half sloshed adults to entertain them!

Q. What’s your Christmas day routine?

A. Normally I’d get up, do the veg, start on the champagne early, open the presents with the girls and sit down around 3pm but this year I don’t have to worry about peeling the veg!

Q. Lots of mistletoe or mince pie?

A. I love mistletoe, but I don’t need a plant based excuse to kiss someone!

Q. What is your fitness plan for January?

A. None as I’ll be filming Britain’s Got Talent! But I’ll try and keep up my yoga and eat as healthily as I can when on the road filming.

Q. How do you juggle being a mum with your career?

A. I’m really lucky as I have loads of help from my husband and my mum but I always try and work around my children’s school hours, even if that means I have to start at 5am so I’ll try and squash everything in so I can be home in time for the school run

Q. This year you hit the headlines by wearing a selection of stunning slashed to the thigh Lebanese gowns.
What are your thoughts on women embracing their sexuality at every age, whether they are mothers, or grandmothers?

A. I think go for it, why not? Why put an age or a label on when you should feel good or why you feel good? My nans attitude is that you should cover up, cut your hair short and let it go grey which is fine for her generation but it’s not how I am going to be! I want to look like Joan Collins when I am in my 90s!

Q. What can we expect of your fabulous style next year?

A. No particular structure to it, but I think you’ll see a lot of French floaty chic on Britain’s Got Talent from me this year!

Q. How did you get involved in the fab TK Maxx Love your Neighbours Campaign?

A. I come from a small village where I lived on a housing estate and we knew everyone in the street and surrounding houses, we’d borrow flour or sugar from neighbours and I always felt safe and happy playing on the front lawn because I knew everyone was watching out for everyone else, post was taken in, mail was taken in, all those clichés you think about when having a neighbour was what I enjoyed and knew when I was younger. So when I found out that 53% of Brits are too shy to even say hello I agreed with TK Maxx that we should make some noise around the issue, because I think nowadays we’d all like that sense of security back a bit and metaphorically speaking hold hands together and join forces with each other and know that if you needed them you can always pop next door or down the road, even if it is just for a spare teabag!

See more in #closermagazine @closeronline today.

***TK Maxx teamed up with Amanda Holden to reunite the nation’s neighbours as part of its ‘Love your Neighbour’ Christmas campaign.
You can view the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXfsQmvlyx4