WITH her vibrant wardrobe and impeccably styled hair, there’s no denying that Prue Leith knows how to look the part.
Yet, judge believes there’s a limit to how much time women should spend on their appearance – and she wishes we’d all stop obsessing over every detail of our lives.
For , 85, the focus on self-image has gone too far.
“I do get irritated by the endless self-absorption and constant ‘me, me, me’ stuff,”; she says.
“Something’s wrong when we seem to want or need so much pampering all the time.
“I was in Western a couple of months ago and went to this little town where there were no proper shops but just endless massage places, wellness centres, foot clinics and the like.
“Just about every kind of maintenance you could think of for mind, body and soul.
“I’m not saying we shouldn’t have these things but so many women seem to think of nothing but themselves.”;
A 2024 YouGov survey found that 85 per cent of British women engage in self-care activities, with 24 per cent participating daily and 44 per cent at least once a week.
Many (61 per cent) say it improves their mental and emotional well-being, while half say it helps to manage stress.
“It’s very navel-gazey and sort of unhealthy actually,”; Prue continues.
“I don’t want to sound pompous about it but I just think if they were thinking a little bit more about other people and a little bit less about themselves, they would be happier.”;
Prue doesn’t hold back when it comes to the issue of , either.
While she acknowledges its benefits for women, she believes it has had a confusing effect on some adolescent boys and young men, such as 13-year-old in the hit series .
In the show, Jamie struggles with his identity and place in the world, feeling conflicted as he navigates the pressures of modern masculinity and his with women.
“While feminism has been brilliant for girls and women, I do feel that it’s had quite an unsettling effect on young men who don’t know what their roles are in life and don’t know what to think,”; she explains.
“Many aren’t toxic but they just feel ineffectual. But undeniably some are toxic – the ones who look upon as a role model.
“They hate women because Tate does.”;
Former kickboxer Andrew Tate, 38, has become the go-to figure for many impressionable young men.
His have earned him a huge following, with impressionable boys lapping up his toxic views on women.
Confident, competent women taking charge provokes two reactions in men or boys who feel inadequate
Prue Leith
“Confident, competent women taking charge provokes two reactions in men or boys who feel inadequate,”; Prue continues.
“They’re either cowed and intimidated by females or they hate them.
“I’m no psychologist but I think this also links in to people just thinking about themselves and how they feel. About looking inwards rather than outwards.”;
While Prue commands an impressive 376,000 followers on and almost 70,000 more on X, formerly known as Twitter, she isn’t oblivious to social media’s role in shaping how young people see the world – and themselves.
“I don’t really know what can be done about it,”; she says.
‘Inadequate and unhappy'
“Kids these days just don’t seem to have the confidence and resilience earlier generations had – and must have something to do with that.
“They’re constantly comparing themselves to these ‘amazing’ people with seemingly ‘amazing’ lives who they see on their screens.
“It makes them feel inadequate and unhappy. It breeds feelings of general discontent – this myth that everyone else is ‘living their best life’.
“They’re more likely to be living a false life themselves and probably pretty miserable, too.”;
Prue is a proud mother and grandmother. Her daughter, Li-da, has two young children, Joseph, five, and Daisy, three, while her son, Danny, has three children, Ben, 14, Charlie, 12, and nine-year-old Sophie.
“With regards to the young people in my life – my two grandchildren from my daughter are too little for it to effect, while my son’s three have been brought up quite strictly,”; she says.
“Their screen time is limited and their are very supportive and encouraging, which, in turn, makes the children confident.
“Young people would be far better off doing something real rather than staring at a screen at these so-called ‘perfect lives’ all the time – , , , debating...
“Outgoing things rather than inward looking things. Activities which give them self-confidence, happiness and purpose. Things that make them feel alive and a valued, valid part of society.”;
Prue, a renowned chef, restaurateur, and author with decades of experience in the culinary world, also believes that getting our kids to start liking from an early age would be a step in the right direction to improving their mental as well as their physical well-being.
She says: “The rates in children are alarming and getting worse with almost a third regarded as obese or overweight.
“I’ve been saying for 60 years that we start addressing this by teaching children to love healthy food – and the way to do this is to teach them how to cook.
“If we fed our children healthy, non-processed food, we wouldn’t have this problem with obesity.
“Look at . Just four per cent of their children are overweight and the rate is falling.
“Obviously, they’re doing something we’re not. Children in Japanese sit down to a free meal every single day, and it’s healthy.
“Nothing that’s processed is allowed into a school kitchen. Everything has to be made on that day with fresh ingredients.
“Right from an early age, a whole nation is being taught how and what to eat.
“They even have rules about what can be sold in supermarkets.
“However, our government just looks at the amount of tax raised from chocolate, and the like, and thinks: ‘We can’t afford to do that’. But the government must look more long term.”;
So does Prue believe such as , and Mounjaro, which 500,000 Brits are reportedly taking, are the answer to the nation’s obesity crisis?
“Something like 60 per cent of hospital admissions are due to -related diseases and so I can see how this form of treatment could save the NHS an awful lot of .
“If the jabs can help people change the way they eat and how much they eat, then I think they may literally be life savers and possibly the saviour of the NHS, too.”;
While fat jabs decrease patients’ appetites, Prue believes smaller portions across the board are what’s needed to get Brits fighting fit.
“I just wish people would eat less,”; she says.
“Portion sizes these days are vast. It’s ridiculous. We just eat too much.
“I think this is partly due to unhappiness. When we’re not happy, we comfort eat. It’s true that when you’re miserable, you go straight to the fridge or want chocolate.”;
I just wish people would eat less
Prue Leith
South African-born Prue’s views on food and happiness are deeply rooted in her own experiences, shaped not just by her incredible career but also by the challenges in her personal life.
In her 20s, she began a secret, 13-year-long affair with much older man who was married to a close friend of her mother’s.
Eventually Rayne left his wife and six months and ‘officially’ got together with Prue, 22 years his junior, who he would go on to marry.
Love of my life
“Morally it wasn’t right – I know that,”; Prue reflects. “I don’t think that you should sleep with another woman’s husband.
“But I don’t think I could not have fallen deeply in love with Rayne.
“This means that while it wasn’t right, we could never have done anything differently. We did try to part a few times but always got back together.
“Rayne was the love of my life. What made it so awful was that Nan, his first wife, was a close family friend.
“Rayne loved her and so did I. She was wonderful. Rayne was determined not to make an enemy of her and they stayed friends. We all did.
“Eventually, she would come and stop with us every weekend. We got through it the best way we could – my mother included.
“She was angry when Rayne left Nan, which he did several months before he and I officially became an item.
“But when she learnt I was and that I was supremely happy, she was wonderful.
“I have no advice for people in this situation – it’s different for everyone. You can only do your best and try to think the best of people. That’s all I want to say about it. It was a long time ago.”;
Rayne passed away in 2002. She met her current husband in 2011 and they in 2016. A fashion designer before he retired, John has lately become a bit of a telly star by appearing alongside Prue on her ITV Saturday morning show, Prue .
She laughs: “He’s stealing my thunder and I’m supposed to be the TV star in the family.
“We were at a supermarket checkout the other day and the girl on the till recognised John. She said: ‘Oh, you’re the man on Cotswold Kitchen. I love that show. You’re so funny!’
“And I’m stood there packing the bags and she hasn’t a clue who I am. I’m pleased for John, though. He’s a natural.”;
I love Bake Off. It’s great fun
Prue Leith
may prefer to her in a hired kitchen but Prue loves working from home.
“I wouldn’t want to film it anywhere else. I’m very proud of my kitchen and love living on the job, so to speak.
“I love the fact that Bambi, the lady on both my show and The Great British Bake Off, wakes me up at 8am with a cuppa and I go straight into the make-up chair.
“On Bake Off, I have to get up about 5.30 to be in the make-up chair for 7am.”;
With regards to Bake Off, eyebrows were raised a few months ago when Prue revealed she wouldn’t be doing the Stand Up for Cancer version of the show.
She’ll be back judging the regular show which is broadcast in September, though.
“I said no to the celebrity one because I wanted some time off. I love Bake Off. It’s great fun.
“Everyone gets on and the bakers are amazing. Will this be my last one? I honestly don’t know. I know I’ll have to stop some time and I’d rather jump than be pushed but right now I’m very happy.”;
- Prue Leith’s Cotswold Kitchen is on Saturday mornings on ITV1 at 11.45 and streaming on ITVX
