Katherine Ryan has revealed she plans to ease son Fred into school part-time when he starts reception in September, admitting she’s not sure either of them are ready for the change.
Fred, who was born in June 2021, has only just turned four — making him one of the youngest in his year group.
There’s also a logistical headache for the Canadian-Irish comedian, 42, and her husband Bobby Kootstra, who face three different school runs — with eldest daughter Violet, 16, starting sixth form and youngest daughter Fenna, two, at a nursery “40 minutes apart” from Fred’s school.
Speaking to The Standard, she explained: “Fred starts at reception, which I was a little bit conflicted about because he’s a young four and I am a little Scandinavian in my beliefs about institutionalising very small children. He is very articulate and clever but he’s really attached to us as well so they’re being really cool. They’re going to let him do reception three days a week for a little while and work his way up to five, so we’ll see how Fred responds to that.”
Ryan, who is currently pregnant with her fourth child, also joked: “I really believe this will be my last child… then next year, I’m gonna get hot. I’m back on the botox, I might even get a facelift… I’m looking forward to becoming a very glamourous mid-forties woman because I’ve been having babies for the last five years.”
She went on to praise her eldest daughter Violet, 16, who as well as her studies is increasingly stepping into the spotlight.
As well as appearing on her mum’s reality TV show, At Home with Katherine Ryan, the teen recently interviewed the cast of Disney’s Freakier Friday — including Jamie Lee Curtis — on camera with her famous parent.
“I could not have interviewed Jamie Lee Curtis at 16 with such poise, so it was a really exciting opportunity,” said Ryan, who admitted she herself felt star-struck.
“I think she can do no wrong. To be able to meet her was just a dream come true for me. I think I held it together pretty well considering.”
Ryan also said she would support Violet if she wanted to star in her own reality TV show ala Princess Andre.
“I think you’d be doing a girl like Princess a disservice by holding her back… If Violet wanted to go that path I would absolutely support her. I’ve kept her off social media for at least a decade, but now, she’s really in the mix, she’s really good on TikTok and she has decided that she wants to be a lot more forward facing, she likes doing presenting, she likes acting and stuff and I think if she’s 16 and that’s what she wants to do then I will support her in that.”
In typically candid fashion, The Duchess creator quipped that Violet is “the wealthiest woman I know” after the teen announced she intends to buy Starbucks every day for school lunch.
“Can you imagine at that age?” she laughed. “I couldn’t even have Starbucks in my twenties!”
Violet may want to rethink that plan as alongside juggling family life, Ryan is a celebrity ambassador for recipe box brand Gousto, hailing its new Dinner Peace campaign as a “miracle solution” for busy households during the back-to-school rush.
Research conducted for Gousto discovered over half (57 per cent) of Brits admit thinking about what to cook feels like a chore and nearly a third of parents (31 per cent) say deciding dinner is the single most stressful school-night moment.
The What’s My Age Again podcast host said: “I know a lot of parents are ready to send the kids back to school but that comes with its own wild scheduling so Gusto is rolling out Dinner Peace which is a wonderful range of 10 minute meals, five minutes prep and also no cook meals and they don’t compromise on flavour and taste and they are still delicious.
“It’s just a really convenient and realistic solution for busy families. We had a picky tea on there the other day and my children didn’t know about picky tea, it was a hit.”
Despite expanding her brood, Ryan — who recently lent her voice to animated sequel Bad Guys 2 and has been tapped to host The Real Housewives of London reunion show — doesn’t intend on slowing down after the baby is born.
“I wouldn’t do a tour immediately but I would take work straight away,” she said. “I have another stand-up special coming out this Christmas. My work is very flexible — if I get a day to do something wonderful that I love, then even if the baby was two days old I would go and do that. But if it was a travel show for three months, I obviously would not be able to do that.”
“I’m looking to do little jobs in the area right away because I’m so lucky to have this career and to be able to still be having kids so I just have to do it all at once.”
Gousto and Katherine Ryan have teamed up for Dinner Peace – helping families replace weeknight panic with quick, tasty, home-cooked meals, with the new Batch Cook and No Cook ranges leading the way.
