Tess Daly on the hardships of being a working mum: ‘I never stop’ – exclusive

Tess Daly is the perfect model for her luxury swimwear brand, Naia Beach. And when it comes to getting glam, despite her experience as a model, there are only two people she turns to.

The Strictly Come Dancing host credits her daughters for keeping her up to date with beauty trends, “Thanks to all the latest TikTok trends, my daughters are much more clued-up than me when it comes to the latest make-up,” laughs the mum of two, who shares Phoebe and Amber with her husband, BBC Radio 2 DJ Vernon Kay.

“They’re like: ‘Mum, why are you not contouring?’ So funny. They know so much; I get tips from my girls at this point. This generation is so much more informed than we ever were.”

The presenter dotes on her daughters. For a long time, she and Vernon stuck to their decision to keep their children out of the public eye while they were growing up – “until they could decide for themselves”, Tess has said.

Being a positive role model for them is hugely important to the star. “I’m happy for my girls to see my work ethic,” she says. “I’m passionate and hardworking, and they understand that the work you put into something equates to the success you get out of it.”

Both Phoebe and  Amber got a first-hand insight into their mum’s approach during their latest holiday, she says. “Recently, I took the girls on a trip to Dubai. Every single day, I was working on the brand. I’m the type of person who feels a bit guilty lying on a sunbed when there’s work to be done.”

And although her daughters are growing up – Phoebe has recently been spotted at red-carpet events with her father – Tess jokes that having the brand means she is still in a care-taking role.

“It’s like our baby,” she says of Naia Beach, the business she launched in 2021 with a friend and business partner Gayle Lawton. It’s another project on top of her TV work and being a mother. “It’s part of the juggle, but as women, we are busy trying to fit all those hats on, because that’s what we do,” she says. “Hand on heart, I’ve been striving for that perfect balance in my entire career since becoming a mother. It’s not easy. Every mother I know is Wonder Woman because they are trying their hardest.”

For Tess,  the solution lies in looking after herself. “We have to have value in our wellbeing, while nurturing everyone else, too. “It’s important to take a little bit of time for ourselves, put the right food in, take the right supplements,” she says.

“We have to move, breathe, eat properly. I’m passionate  about that stuff  because if we fall apart, the world that we’re juggling falls apart.”

Yet she’s managing that juggle with the help of Phoebe, who recently made a business suggestion.”Following her input into one of our swimsuit designs that went on to become a bestseller, we’ve named the bikini version the ‘Phoebe’, after her!

To read the full exclusive interview, pick up the latest issue of HELLO! on sale in the UK on Monday. You can subscribe to HELLO! to get the magazine delivered free to your door every week or purchase the digital edition online via our Apple or Google apps.