Keeping plates spinning: Billie Piper in a shoot for ES Magazine
(Picture: Theresa Marx)Billie Piper says her pursuit of a “really successful life” has come at a cost — her own “self-care”.
In an interview with ES Magazine, Piper, 38, said she had been reflecting on her career, which she began aged 13 as a TV performer before becoming a pop star at 15.
At 21 she landed the role of companion Rose in Doctor Who, which led to a critically acclaimed West End career. She has three children — two sons with her ex-husband Laurence Fox and a daughter with musician Johnny Lloyd.
On her success, the star said: “I’ve been thinking it over recently, ‘Has my entire career just been charged by being a very anxious person? Is that what has produced all this stuff? I am not sure how and where it starts but as a woman I know there are still these expectations that you must be a professional person, an attentive mother, have all sorts of meaningful, intimate relationships with your partner and look good. It’s just a lot. And on top of that there is just this overwhelming sense of guilt — and that is unique to women.”
When asked if she meant feeling guilty over struggling to juggle everything, she continued: “I mean more guilt around trying to pursue oneself and how that impacts child rearing and relationships with your partner. It’s hard to keep those three things cooking. The idea that you can find balance while spinning a career, relationships, children, is bullshit.
“One believes that one’s life is only worth living if it is a really successful one; I have bought into that hook, line and sinker. This doesn’t leave any room for any self care.”
Piper also spoke about how she found watching the recent Britney Spears documentary difficult because of their shared experiences as child stars. She said: “I felt really odd. So horribly familiar that I had to turn it off.”
