22 S MAGAZINE ★ 18 AUGUST 2019
Life as I know it
Not a lot of people know
this but I’m very good at...
impersonations of Bart
Simpson. I hadn’t done it
for years until my kids saw
The Simpsons and I did my
impersonation for them.
They weren’t as impressed
as I’d have liked, but I got a
chuckle out of them. That’s
a few mum points.
My best friend is... I have
different friends for different
occasions. There’s a friend I’ll
go to when I have to do a photo
shoot or be fashionable and
another one who’s a mum for
kids’ advice. But most of them
are pretty good all-rounders.
I’m definitely a girl’s girl.
My nickname is... Konnie,
because my actual name is
Kanak, pronounced “kon-ook.”
It’s Sanskrit for gold. It was all
very confusing when the teacher
read Kanak off the register and
I’d have to explain this elaborate
name, so I just became Konnie.
The bravest thing I’ve ever
done is... diving with sharks
and feeding them – and not
from a cage – in my Blue Peter
days. I was wearing a special
diving suit made of chain mail
instead of neoprene. The
sharks bashed my head as they
passed. I thought, “How bad
can it be? The BBC will be in
more trouble than me if I die.”
That’s how I got through most
scary things.
My favourite TV show is... I’ll
say Black Mirror, because my
husband makes it. It makes you
think and takes you out of your
comfort zone. The scenarios
are all things that aren’t that
far-fetched and a lot have
become reality. In China, for
example, they have citizenship
scores where people are given
a rating for things like being
late for doctor’s appointments
and if your score is bad they
can penalise you.The ex-Blue Peter presenter-turned-author, 44, lives in
west London with her husband, Black Mirror creator Charlie
Brooker, and their sons Covey, seven, and Huxley, five
Konnie Huq
footprint. I like it because you
can just switch the phone off
and nobody can contact you and
if the boys are asleep, then flying
is better than the actual holiday.
My greatest weakness is...
chocolate. I just love truffles and
ganaches and pralines. I have
them as often as possible, but
not every day.
If could pass any law I would...
make sure there’s a library in
every school – with a librarian.
I drive... a Mitsubishi hybrid
plug-in electric vehicle, also
known as a PHEV. I love the fact
that I can do electric driving,
because it’s annoying that
people drive 4x4 gas guzzlers.
The shop I can’t walk past...
I can walk past most shops but
I love a bookshop because it
contains knowledge and my book
that’s coming out. My favourite
bookshop is Booth’s in Hay on
Wye which has a really cool
basement, a coffee shop and
armchairs. I’m more of a Kindle
person now because my
husband bought me one and
because we’ve got no shelf
space left in our house. Our
books are piling up on the floor- at first it looked nice and
bohemian, but then it got too
much and I need to take some
to the charity shop.
The most expensive thing
I’ve splashed out on is...
probably a holiday. I’m not into
WORDS: VICKI POWER / PHOTOGRAPH: ED MILLER things. Even when my husband
My perfect evening is... having
a really good meal cooked by
Charlie and then watching
something together. That’s the
dream scenario. Recently we’ve
liked Chernobyl and I’m currently
liking Killer Ratings on Netflix. The
boys would be in bed – they’re not
included in a good evening.
I would like to say sorry to... the
next generation because we’ve
messed it up for them. Hopefully,
things are solvable, but the way
politics is going, plus climate
change and socio-economic
circumstances, I feel we have
a lot to apologise for.
My first kiss was... It might have
been in primary school from
Simon Chase, who was really
freckly and had thick-rimmed
tortoiseshell glasses. I was
mortified because it was during
a game of kiss chase in the
playground. I was quite good at
running short distances and
expected to get to “home” in
time and it really threw me when
Simon caught me.
My biggest regret is... I could
have had kids earlier, maybe.
I often think I’m going to be ready
for my Freedom Pass by the time
they leave home, which is a
depressing thought. I had my first
at 36, but everybody seems to be
having kids older these days, so
that’s how I console myself for
being a geriatric mother.
The one thing I’d change about
myself is... I’m quite impatientand I wish I wasn’t, but I can’t help
it. I can’t sit in traffic, for example.
The best thing my parents taught
me was... don’t waste stuff – not
time, food, money or opportunity.
I don’t like people over-buying
clothes and wearing two per cent
of their wardrobe. I haven’t bought
clothes since I left Blue Peter. I’ve
got loads of clothes and don’t
need more in my life. I always eat
what’s on my plate, too. Even at
a little party or work thing, if
there’s a platter of food I’ll be like,
“You can’t throw that away.” I’ll eat
it even if I’m not hungry just so
it’s not gone to waste.
The last time I cried was.... I cry
all the time. Most recently when
I presented at the Carnegie and
Kate Greenaway Medals. The
actual Carnegie medal went to
Elizabeth Acevedo, who was writing
about a girl who’s brilliant at
poetry. She made this amazing
speech about empowering kids
when they’re young. It was moving.
The first record I ever bought
was... The Banana Splits theme
tune on yellow vinyl. My sister was
a teenager and it was probably
hers, but I liked the song. I also
had The Jungle Book album when
I was very young.
It’s not good for my image, but
I like... driving, when I consider
myself to be environmentally
aware. The way I get around it is
that I have an electric car. I also
like flying, although obviously
I hate the thought of its carbon