Davina McCall is one of the nation’s best-loved presenters, fronting iconic shows of the past (like Big Brother) and present (The Masked Singer), as well as being a fitness entrepreneur, podcaster and vocal menopause campaigner.
Of course, in addition, Davina is a mother and a partner, but also a friend – a role often missed off the list.
“Work-life balance goes out of kilter very quickly if you are not hanging out with your friends enough,” Davina tells Good Housekeeping. “Being with friends and people that really know you is incredibly wholesome, and really, really important to your mental health.”
75% of 40 to 65 years polled by global hotel brand TUI BLUE said that their friendships have a positive impact on both their general and mental wellbeing. 63% also said their friendship group had helped them through difficult times in their lives.
Here, Davina explains to Good Housekeeping why friendship means so much to her in midlife, shares some of her favourite holiday memories and reveals the smaller ways she makes time for her friends.
What does your friendship network look like now?
I've got one best friend, Sarah, who's been my best friend since I was 19, and probably knows everything about me. We’ve been through it all.
Then I’ve got a huge group of friends who I go away with for weekends, it’s mostly girls. All their partners get invited on things too, but we do quite a lot of stuff just girls together.
How have your friendship groups evolved over the years?
I think what's interesting about being in midlife is that you have different groups of friends from different times in your life.
I've got the school mum friends and it's funny - you get thrown together because your kids are friends, but you end up becoming really good friends too.
When they get to secondary school you don't meet parents so much, so it was more reconnecting with old mates, making new mates in London, or friends through work. It's nice to have a broad variety.
My partner [hairstylist Michael Douglas] just had a birthday party in London and we brought all these different groups of people together to meet. The school friends met the new friends, it was really good.
What role do you play in your friendship group?
I feel like the I'm fun person.
I like dancing, so if anybody has a party, I'm always massively grateful. We don't do that very often anymore, but it's good fun when we do. When we do, we then have to take two months out because none of us can handle it!
Do you find there are particular things you rely on different friends for?
I rely on Sarah for everything, she is my go-to for every kind of question or drama. Obviously, my partner is an amazing sounding board as well.
Then, if there's anything that you want to discuss about your kids, I always think school mums are really helpful, because they've got kids of the same age and they understand that time of life.
Have there been any tough times in your life that you couldn’t have got through without a friend?
There's been many times when Sarah has helped me. She helped get me clean many, many years ago from drugs. She really supported me through the divorce process which, as everybody knows, even when it's the right thing, is tricky. She’s instrumental in supporting me with work and when things go right, when things go wrong. When I had babies, she was amazing. She's really been through it all.
How do you spend time with friends?
I rely on other people to organise the get-togethers [because of busy work commitments]. I often have to change plans and my friends are all super understanding. I'm always so grateful when somebody goes, “Right we're going to do a girl's lunch, when are you free Davina?”
A really good girlfriend of mine is 50 in October and she's going to Ibiza. She's rented a big villa and 12 people are going, but I can't because I've got The Masked Singer, so I'm a bit gutted about that. I've got horrific FOMO [fear of missing out] and it hasn't even started!
What do your group holidays usually look like?
Spa stuff and just chill, easy going. There’s music by the pool, beach holiday stuff, eating in little restaurants and little coves - that's the kind of thing that we do when we all get together.
Why do you think midlife is a good time to holiday with friends?
You're probably at a time when life is pretty chaotic and exhausting. You might have teenage kids, but they still need you and they're still quite demanding, so you're shattered. There's always something going on when you're in midlife. It’s nice to go away and have bit of time to talk things through and process life.
Are there any particularly special trips you’ve been on?
Once a year, Sarah and I went to France for three days on our own. That was always stand-out because life was very busy. We both had three young children, we lived in different places, and this was a time where we would spend three days non-stop talking, just on our own. We barely took a breath. Ideas were formulated on those trips; business ideas, ideas for our futures. What did we want from life? Where were we going? So important.
What advice do you have on smaller ways people can connect with their friends?
Life is really busy and then you think, “I haven't called someone in six months, I can't call them now!” But you can, you absolutely can, and you must. When you do call them, you'll think, “Why didn't I call them earlier?”
Davina is highlighting the importance of friendships at midlife with TUI BLUE on their Friends Reconnected campaign and was a guest at the TUI BLUE Aeneas Resort in Ayia Napa, Cyprus. Head to www.tui-blue.com to find perfect personalised holidays to connect with loved ones.
