SHE’S the only judge to have appeared on every series of Britain’s Got Talent since its launch in 2007, but amid news that David Walliams is stepping away from his role on the show following his foul-mouthed comments about BGT contestants, Amanda Holden, who sits alongside Alesha Dixon and Simon Cowell, isn’t even sure she will be back in 2023.
“We’re all negotiating our contracts,” the 51 year old explains.
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“Who knows who will be sat in those seats next year? I love the show. I’ve been there for 15 years.
“All the things that have happened to me, I’ve lived through on Britain’s Got Talent.
“It’s sort of the foundation of my life. I got the job when Lexi was one and I’ve got married, lost a baby, given birth and been in a coma since.
“It’s not until you look back that you realise everything I’ve ever been through has been shared on this show.
“That’s why it means more to me than just being on an entertainment show. Britain’s Got Talent feels very personal. I can’t imagine not being there.”
It seems unlikely that Amanda, who has won over audiences with her famous cackle and barely there outfits – more on which later – will be let go.
But regardless of what happens next year, tonight all four judges will be behind the desk on the new ITV1 spin-off Britain’s Got Talent: The Ultimate Magician, which includes a very personal trick with former BGT winner Richard Jones.
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“I am loving it,” Amanda says. “We’re all on board for that, which is absolutely brilliant.
“Magic isn’t always known for being emotional, but Richard’s act floored me.
“There were just floods of tears. It’s going to be very emotional to watch back.”
Amanda won’t be drawn on the allegations surrounding David, but she does pay tribute to her pal Alesha.
“It’s important to stick together, because the way women are portrayed in this industry is not the best it could be.
“The only way to change that is if you do something about it yourself. Alesha and I have proved that we’re strong women.
Our careers are all about longevity. We both have two daughters [Amanda is mum to Lexi, 16, and Hollie, 10, with her record-producer husband Chris Hughes].
You can only be the best example, be authentic and stick to your guns. That’s what our friendship is based on.”
Amanda is often criticised for her risqué outfits and she doesn’t understand why her colleague doesn’t get the same backlash.
“Alesha gets away with wearing bikinis, but I don’t seem to. It’s bizarre. With shows where there are strong women on a panel, it’s sadly inevitable that they’ll be judged on what they’re wearing.
“Alesha and I are very different in terms of fashion – and I love that. I’m never going to stop wearing what I want.
“Everything is checked in my dressing room by an empowering female producer. I’ve not been told I can’t wear something… Yet!”
Have her daughters ever asked their mum to stop flashing the flesh?
Amanda laughs: “Never. My family are only ever encouraging. Lexi and Hollie see me trying on frocks all the time at home and are the ones saying: ‘Go for it, Mum. We love that and you look great.’
“Fashion is about taking risks. I encourage everyone to have a little fun and be a little daring. I’d be bored playing it safe.”
Her fellow Fabulous cover star, Alan Carr, is currently one of the bookies’ favourites to take over from David, but he’s playing it cool, laughingly telling us: “Oh, I have heard those rumours!”
Amanda is equally coy, just saying that: “Alan would be incredible on any TV panel.”
They are together to talk about their new BBC show, Amanda & Alan’s Italian Job, in which they moved to Italy for six months to renovate a house they bought for €1 to then sell for charity.
The pair, who first became friends when Amanda appeared on Alan’s Chatty Man show back in 2009, are a joy to speak to – if you can get a word in edgeways.
And it’s been an almost-impossible task of juggling diaries to get them both on the phone at the same time.
Alan is currently on a stand-up tour in Australia, while Amanda needs to get to bed early for her Heart Breakfast radio show.
Alan says: “The Italian Job is the closest either of us have ever come to doing a reality show. There’s laughter, tears and a bit of friction.”
“Basically, just think if the Kardashians were wearing binbags,” Amanda adds.
“It’s an easy watch. It’s going to go out in January when everyone’s skint and the weather’s terrible. It’s going to brighten everyone up.”
Alan admits: “Obviously with the BBC, I was worried about my swearing. But when you’re sitting next to Amanda in the driving seat, some of those words will pop out.”
Amanda hits back: “You can talk! His driving is so bad, I had to take over in the end. And yes there were some choice words.
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“Though it’s not just us swearing – it is something you can enjoy with your kids.”
Anyone who watches the show will see that there wasn’t much time for driving, as they were always heading to the bar to sample the local rosé.
“How very dare you!” Amanda says in faux outrage. “We had to have something to look forward to after taking up tiles, grouting and dealing with poo up the walls, so you needed to think about your Aperol spritz at the end of the day. It was hard work.”
Alan agrees. “Honestly, I was butch – my dad was so pleased. We were knocking down walls.
“I’ll be annoyed if people think we just minced about then went for a drink. We earned every sip!”
As well as Alan’s strongman ways, viewers will be surprised at how much Amanda gets involved, too.
He explains. “If there’s any ego at all, I just couldn’t have handled it. I would have said: ‘No, I’m going home. Get me on that Ryanair flight.’ Amanda always looks fabulous, but she definitely gets stuck in.
“Although, I was browbeaten like a henpecked husband by the end. I was out with some of the other men in the village and we would moan about our ‘wives’ and being under the thumb.”
Amanda says: “I’ve always been a worker. We’ve done everything in our own house. If I didn’t have nails on my hands, you would think I was a bloke. I’ve always got my hands dirty.”
The pair bicker like an old married couple, whether it’s over who did the best tiling (Amanda) or who has the best taste (also Amanda).
“We had so many rows,” she admits. “He wanted a hessian curtain to hide the crockery and I’m like: ‘No, Alan.’
“We have very different styles. You’ve seen the shirts he wears. Flamboyant. But he went the other way with the bedroom. It was sleek and understated.”
Alan laughs. “Yes, I do swing both ways, thank you very much.
“Amanda loves glamour – not just in her appearance, but also in the home. I like a doily and that thing that you put over the toilet roll.”
Amanda adds: “We didn’t have any major rows. The main thing is that I’m very manipulative and controlling – I won every battle. Alan is just lovely and let me.”
“When they say the man is the head of the house, the woman is the neck, and Amanda was turning my head,” says Alan.
“She’s so clever at it. I was like: ‘D’oh, she’s done it again.’ I’m surprised that we didn’t fall out, because even the locals were saying how hot it was.
“It was unbearable and I do get quite irritable. I was in this jumpsuit looking like a fat Bob The Builder, sweating and getting fatter and fatter with bloody pasta and Aperol spritz.”
It’s not all jokes, though, as Alan admits the show was the perfect tonic to help him get over his marriage breakdown.
In January, Alan announced his separation from partner of 14 years Paul Drayton after Paul was convicted of drink-driving.
He says: “Yes, I definitely did need a project and it did take my mind off of it.”
Amanda adds: “Well, you just haven’t stopped. That’s the best way sometimes to deal with things like that.
“You just get your head down and keep working, because you have to try to keep things as normal as possible. Alan’s not someone that wallows in sadness.”
Alan nods: “I wallow in pasta, yes, but not sadness. It was a really crappy year.
“I got to Italy and I was so excited, but I saw the mess and I was thinking: ‘Do I need this right now?’ Amanda and I were showbiz mates, but by the end of the summer we were such good friends. We’re always texting.
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“So even if no one buys this house, I’ve come out of it with a better friendship than I went in. We could actually probably go on holiday together now.”
Perhaps a trip to America together to see Alan’s other best pal Adele at her Las Vegas residency?
Alan says: “Me and Amanda in Vegas would be amazing. We could drink all day [laughs]! I’d love to see Adele there, but I’m so busy.
“I was so lucky to see her at Hyde Park. Her voice is like an old friend. When she had the Pride flag around her, I was in bits.
“I’d love her to extend the Vegas thing so I can actually go, but I got my fix in London.”
Amanda earned her friendship stripes in Italy by trying to help Alan find love again.
“I was like Cilla Black. Basically, if they were breathing and single, they were in line for Alan,” she jokes.
“I think a lot of them thought me and Alan were married and I might not know something.”
Alan adds: “I heard some people saying in Sicilian: ‘Look at that poor deluded woman with her homosexual husband!’
“I was on the lookout for love, though. Amanda would find them for me and bring them over.
“It was a bit like going on Love Island. But no success.”
In the show, Amanda talks about making life count since she turned 50, saying: “Judi Dench didn’t win her Oscar till she was 60.” But could we see her return to her acting roots?
“I would love to get back to acting, but I’ve got to find the time to do it,” she laments.
“I would love to do a comedy or turn up underneath someone’s skirt in Bridgerton.
“I can be the potty carrier or one of those roles below stairs. That would be amazing.”
Alan is currently working on his first sitcom, which is based on his own life.
“I’m filming it in January. I’ve got another string to my bow! I’m writing scripts as we speak, casting, finding locations. I’m everything – I’ve taken the executive producer role.
“I’ve never been that side of the camera before, having that much responsibility. Just think of it like The Crown but in Southampton.”
As well as having made a best friend in Amanda, Alan has been adopted by the whole of her family after they came to visit them in Italy during filming.
She explains: “Alan dealt with my mother so fabulously on holiday. My husband Chris loves him and now Alan has full sympathy with Chris, because he was a henpecked man for six months in Sicily.
“We’re playing board games around the table with my children. He’s Uncle Alan.”
Amanda wowed fans recently with a snap of her two girls, with many saying the three could be sisters.
She says: “It is bizarre having a 16 year old. She’s got her provisional driving licence! It’s lovely, because she’s gorgeous, with lovely friends. I couldn’t be prouder of her.
“Hollie is full of personality, too. But it is heartbreaking how quickly time goes.
“I left home at 16. So when I look at Lexi, I can’t believe the amount of stuff I had done by her age. I had a job. I was paying rent. I just did all of it by 16. It’s a different time now.”
While most parents would worry about their teens on social media, Amanda has no fear: “She comes from quite a savvy household. She’s grown up with me and a very cynical father, which is a good thing.
“She’s got a realistic view of the world through our eyes. Neither of us suffer fools. I think Lexi is pretty sensible… touch wood.”
With Amanda and Uncle Alan to keep an eye on her, we’re sure she’ll be OK.
- Amanda & Alan’s Italian Job starts Friday January 6, BBC1 and iPlayer.
Fabulous Parenting Club
AMANDA on parenting.
What’s been your biggest win?
I’m living it! My children are gorgeous. Yes, they can be argumentative, stubborn and misbehave sometimes, but mostly I get told how lovely, kind and polite they are.
And the biggest fail?
I probably spoil them too much. I grew up in a completely different way and that’s why I’ve strived so hard. Although my children work hard too, I probably cave in too often!
Any top tips?
Choose your battles and try to be consistent as much as possible.
Is there anything you wish you’d known before having kids?
How quickly time flies. I only ever look forward in life and I have no regrets, but I could have relished time a little better.
Who’s your parenting inspo?
All my girlfriends. They’re like-minded, calm and collected women. We talk openly and bounce off one another, sharing wins and fails. It helps to make us feel more human knowing we’re all in the same boat.