Profile: Anne Diamond

Older and wiser: Anne Diamond

When Anne Diamond used to sit perched on the Good Morning sofa alongside Nick Owen - without a hair out of place and wearing a crisp blouse under a neat suit - she never won any popularity awards.

As her career blossomed, Anne always seemed to have a smug, shrewish look which made her look as if the cat had got the cream.

But pride comes before a fall and the1990s were not kind to Anne.

They started with the loss of her four-month-old son, Sebastion, through cot death and by the end of the decade, her marriage to showbusiness agent Mike Hollingsworth was in tatters after his affair with Virgin Radio DJ Harriet Scott.

They were forced to put their 1.5m 14-bedroom mansion at Cuddesdon, near Wheatley, on the market and his name has recently been romantically linked with an Oxford University student more than half his age.

During the dark days Anne suffered from depression and admitted defeat in the battle of bulge - despite bringing out an exercise video.

But today, despite everything she has been through, Anne stands as a shining beacon of hope and proves that, when things are at rock bottom, they can only get better.

Anne is a survivor. She has maintained a dignified silence throughout the split with Mike and has looked to her own inner resources to get her through the tough times.

"I am older and wiser now. I have learnt a great deal over the past ten years. A decade puts a lot of experience your way and makes you much more sensitive than before, may be.

"Life does not just deal you chocolates and flowers and if you talk to most people they are hiding immense tragedies.

"Survival is so important. Not just for those around you, but for yourself as well - otherwise you can end up going under," she says.

Anne, 46, is undergoing something of a renaissance.

She has a slot on daytime TV and is planning a new cookery programme which she will co-present with top chef Raymond Blanc.

Much of the filming of the new show will take place at Raymond's exclusive Oxfordshire restaurant Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons.

Anne laughs when asked if she was a regular diner there.

"I don't think anyone can afford to be a regular but I have eaten there and enjoyed it very much.

"My sons took me there for my birthday - although I seem to remember that I ended up paying. They're only young though so I don't hold it against them."

And in addition to the new show she will also host a chat show with a difference which will take her into the homes of many high-profile celebrities who will cook for her while she interviews them.

"At the moment everything on TV has to be in some way connected with food - which is ironic because half of the population are on a diet," she says.

Anne is coy about talking about her weight although she admits to being a stone overweight - aren't we all, love?

She says she hopes to have lost that stone by Christmas so that she, like the rest of the female population, can fit into a perfect little black dress when the party season arrives.

Anne is a person with whom women across the country can identify. She has used her misfortunes to form a bond with women from all walks of life mean and she is now seen by many to represent the woman in the street.

Ever since her days on the BBC's Nationwide in the early 1980s she has been the champion of the consumer. And in that capacity her name is now linked with Recover, a new organisation which offers legal help and advice to people seeking compensation through a personal injury claim.

Recover aims to fill the gap in the market left when in February the Government withdrew Legal Aid to people hoping to pursue compensation claims.

Anne says: "Recover is about much more than just litigation and money. It's about caring for people and their families.

"Within 24 hours of an accident Recover's team of legal experts will be able to assess the situation and advise whether someone is entitled to compensation.

"So many companies involved in this area send out the wrong messages. Many adverts almost imply that being involved in an accident is like winning the Lottery and don't take into account the trauma that suffering a personal injury can cause.

Recover, which will be launched on November 15, has made links with a string of companies which can provide practical help immediately to people.

Anne continues: "Say, for example, a working mother was injured by simply tripping over a paving slab she would be faced with all sorts of practical problems.

"How would she get her children to school? How would she get to work? How could she do the housework?

"These practical problems would need immediate attention. Being involved in an accident can be traumatic enough without having to work out a way to cope with the knock-on effect," she says.

Anne's eyes sparkle when she talks about causes close to her heart but while she is committed to her work its clear her boys are the lynch-pin of her life.

"My family will always come first - they have to," she says and the stability her children give her has played an important role in her own recovery.

**Recover's new service opens on November 15. The freephone number is 0800 343434

From Oxford Mail Piazza, Saturday, October 28, 2000