Home is …
Gloucestershire, where I live near Stroud with my husband Mat Collishaw, our sons Clifford and Bruce and our cat Elsie Bolt. We were in Camberwell for 10 years and left in 2024.
Where do you stay in London?
Next time you ask I hope to reply “Claridge’s” but in reality, I only ever pop in there for a glass of champagne to wash away the country cobwebs. For a bed I prey on the pals with the poshest postcodes. Friends in Camden have a cosy spare room from which I can walk to Marylebone through Regent’s Park. I might have coffee, pop into the Maximillian William gallery and generally experience life as the Londoner I never became when I lived there.
Where was your first flat?
35 Old Nichol Street in Shoreditch in 1999. It was more “glorified corridor” than “flat” but I enjoyed a year there with two friends. Other than the perennial bagels and curry on Brick Lane, there was only a strip club nearby and I could never have imagined how chichi it would become 25 years on. I wonder how the men selling pirate porno DVDs on the street corners wring out a living now?
What was your first job?
I started working as a glass collector at the Shoreditch Electricity Showrooms on Hoxton Square in 1999, working my way up to manager. All my friends somehow connect back to that bar and time. Though at 19 I’d have been appalled to know that the hot mess who came in with Tracey Emin at closing time expecting a lock-in would one day be my gentle, intellectual husband.
Where would you recommend for a first date?
St John. The Hendersons and their restaurants embody my values. It would make a good romantic sorting office for me: if you don’t like it, you probably won’t like me.
Which shops do you rely on?
In Camberwell I was reliant on Howard Bros for tools and TFC for all the Ottolenghi ingredients I’d never heard of. I’ve given up fast fashion and try to shop only in hospice shops; the smarter the area, the better the pickings.
What’s the best meal you’ve had?
I’ve been enjoying meals at J Sheekey for more than 20 years. I’ve dined there with all the important people in my life. In that time my friends, family and looks have changed, for better or worse, but my palate is steadfast. I still order oysters, razor clams and Bordeaux.
Where do you go to have fun?
Anywhere I think my children will enjoy — I love to see the city through their eyes now I’m middle-aged. I took them to Balthazar for pancakes one Christmas and to the Barbican to see My Neighbour Totoro.
What’s the best thing a cabbie has ever said to you?
“Give it to the dog.” After driving me home to Bethnal Green from Battersea Dogs Home he donated his fee to my new Staffordshire Bull Terrier. A London cabbie at his finest.
Where do you exercise?
Wherever I happen to be going. I prefer to put my running gear on and run to appointments. It’s such a great way to see the city at pace. Nobody notices me but I notice everything.
Have you ever had a run-in with a police officer?
We once lost our son in Myatt’s Fields when he was three. I’m worse than useless in a crisis and when the police arrived and asked whathe was wearing and what he looked like I could only yell, “I don’t know!” They may have questioned if I was even his mother if we hadn’t found him on our doorstep, having sensibly walked the half-mile home.
Where do you let your hair down?
I hate nightclubs. When I dance I want control of the music and a clear dancefloor so hair-downage can only happen at home. Who do you call when you want to have fun? Lara Bohinc or Mimi Xu always amuse.
What are you up to for work?
My work’s currently in an exhibition called The Long Now, celebrating 40 years of the Saatchi Gallery. Back home in my workshop I’m teaching myself to carve in stone and wood and to draw in ink for an exhibition I have in mind.
Who is your hero?
ITV editor Emily Morgan. She was the first British journalist to broadcast from a Covid ward despite personal risk, which typified her approach to everything. As my older sister she steered me through life with wisdom and so much laughter. All that was good in her crystallised in her final six weeks in 2023 after a terminal cancer diagnosis; as her body shrank her spirit grew. Being by her side as she died was the privilege of my life. She showed me a short-cut to enlightenment and I have made no decision since without first conjuring her pithy advice.
