Andrea McLean has spoken about the true impact her decision to leave ITV’s Loose Women had on her life
(Picture: Getty Images)Andrea McLean has said her big brand endorsements decided to part company with her on the day she quit Loose Women.
The presenter, 52, had been a familiar face on the lunchtime ITV show for 13 years but she decided to walk away after a nervous breakdown and global pandemic forced her to reconsider her priorities.
While she had been fully prepared for the financial loss of leaving her highly paid TV job, she had not considered the other brands she worked with would decide to cut ties with her.
Describing herself as the “breadwinner” of her family, she said it had felt like a “punch in the stomach”.
Speaking on the Secure The Insecure With Johnny Seifert podcast, she said: “When I made the announcement I was leaving TV to follow my heart and dreams, go all in on This Girl is On Fire, obviously we put a lot of planning into this moment because obviously it’s a huge jump.
"I was the breadwinner and this was the job that was paying the bills but everyone in TV does jobs as well.
‘’That’s how big a deal moving away from TV is. It was financially like a punch in the stomach, my safety net was gone. I was like, Oh my god I only have my savings. I can’t turn back and change my mind. I have no over income."
Refusing to be bitter, McLean decided to take the high road.
The mother-of-two recently made a surprise return to Loose Women for a one-off appearance.
Discussing the possibility of going back on a more permanent basis, she said: ‘’The door is always open to me, I appreciate that but yes it will go on definitely as a guest and chat about things 100% but not to work because I’m doing too much.’’
McLean married businessman Nick Feeney in 2017 and she has two children from previous relationships.
