10 womansweekly.com
S
he’s beena firm
fixtureon our TV
screensfor many
years,but it’s not
oftenwe get to see the
morerelaxedversionof
NatashaKaplinsky.
Famedforbeinga serious
newsanchor,Natasha
is understandablyrarely
allowedto becarefree
onscreen.
Butwhen
Woman’s
Weekly
catchesup
withthe
46-year-old
mumof
two,it’sclear
something
haschanged.
She’scalm,joyousand
vibrantasshechatsaboutlife- 12monthsaftersurvivinga
freakholidayaccidentwhen
a boatshewasonexploded
into flames,nearlycausing
herto loseeverythingand
everyoneshelovedin the
blinkof aneye.Herdaughter
Angelicain particular
sufferedquitebadburns
in theincident.
‘Formeit justput
everythingintoperspective - howquicklywecould
havelosteverything.I was
ona burningboatwith
everybodyI loved.
‘It wasa veryhard
experiencebutonethat’s
givenmea totallydifferent
outlookonlife.NowI just
‘Wehada race
toseewho
couldgrow
theireyelashes
andeyebrows
backfirst’
TO BE ALIVE’
WinningStrictly
in 2004Withhusband
JustinBowerOneyearaftertheboataccidentthatnearlytore
herlifeapart,NatashaKaplinskyopensupabout
findingsolaceinhercreativeroots...
WORDS:
GEORGIA
FARQUHARSON.
PHOTOS:
BBC,
KEN
McKAY/ITV/SHUTTERSTOCK,
SHUTTERSTOCK
‘I am just grateful
feel so supremely grateful
that we survived.’
So since the accident,
Natasha’s focus has shifted
and her gratitude over being
a mother to Arlo, 11, and
Angelica, nine, has only
grown deeper.
‘My children are the most
magical things,’ she says.
‘It’s the hardest job I’ve ever
done but
most certainly
the most
rewarding.
They’re the
best addition
to our lives
and I adore
being a
mother.’
Yet Natasha- who is married to Justin
Bower – admits it’s
something she nearly
missed out on.
‘I was a bit of a career girl
and was absolutely 100 per
cent focused on it for a very
long time. I nearly missed the
chance at having the most
amazing experience of my
life and that was when Arlo
and Angelica came into it. It
was only then that I suddenly
realised how much joy and
love you can feel.’
Watching your child suffer
is never easy, but Natasha
sustained some of the same
injuries as her daughter
in the boat accident, so
they were able to fight
through it together.
‘We took the mirrors off
the walls in our house and
had a race to see who could
grow their eyelashes and
eyebrows back first,’ she
recalls. ‘I just would not have
been able to cope watching