Hosting live telly for millions of Loose Women viewers is a breeze for Christine Lampard but becoming a mum has left her plagued with health fears.
Christine, 43, has two children Patricia, three, and Freddie, one, with football manager husband Frank Lampard.
But her determination to be around for them has left her stressing over the slightest sniffle.
She says: “I try and be chilled but it’s made me much more anxious. It’s created a form of health anxiety in me. Suddenly I think, ‘I can’t be ill because I’ve got to be here for you’.
“I have a constant worry about them – if I could zip them up in a NASA spacesuit it would be wonderful.
“I’ve become that mum, I think, ‘You’re so precious, I’m here to protect you. I’ve become a bit more stressed but it’s all for the love of them.” Like every mum, Christine struggles to meet the demands of work and home life.
Frank is away from their London home managing Everton on Merseyside and she is combining Loose Women spots and hosting Lorraine this summer.
Christine recently told her Loose Women panellists it can be challenging to have a partner working away. So how does she manage?
She says: “I’m trying to have a good balance.
“Frank’s away and my family are back home so I have to be well-planned.
“The beauty of live telly is you know when you’re finished. I dip in and do my bits but I’m mostly at home.
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“I know I’m lucky to be able to have that balance, you can feel like you’re pulling in all directions and that
struggle’s real for so many people.
“I had children later in life, I really enjoyed myself up to now, I’ve done all my partying and I feel very grateful I have the chance to be with my children.”
Life for the Lampards is unstarry as the family’s favourite holidays are to Christine’s native Northern Ireland.
She says: “We’re outdoorsy. That’s how I grew up so I like getting home to do that. We’re quite active. And we do have a lot of laughs.”
Early signs suggest there’s another footballer in the family. Christine says: “Our little girl, according to Frank, has a great right foot. It could be another Lampard No8 at some stage…
“I’d be very happy with her in the green and white and Daddy wants her in the England colours so I’ll let her decide.”
But for now it’s time to enjoy the summer and get ready to celebrate again at autumn’s Pride of Britain awards.
Christine says: “There are very few nights like it. The emotion in the room, I’ve never experienced anything like it.
“If you win it must be one of those amazing accolades in life.
“I feel very privileged and proud to have been part of it.”
Christine owes her happy but busy family life to a chance encounter at the Mirror’s Pride of Britain Awards.
The star met Frank, who has daughters Luna, 16 and Isla, 14 from his previous relationship, at the ceremony in 2009. Christine says: “We talk about it all the time. It was the beginning of a now 13-year relationship, almost seven years married and two children – all born out of going to Pride of Britain.”
On Life Changing Stories, the Pride of Britain podcast, the host reveals she and ex-Chelsea star Frank, 44, nearly did not make it to the awards.
She recalls: “It was October 6, 2009, the Grosvenor House Hotel.
“I was doing the One Show and I was worried about coming in late but I thought, ‘No, I am going to go’.
“Then Frank decided last minute – so technically neither of us was meant to be there at all.
“It turned out our tables were beside one another. A couple of people claim they were the reason we met.
“Piers Morgan being at the top of the list because he was at the table with Frank and came over and said, ‘There’s someone I want to introduce you to’. He claimed – his opening line – that he watched me on the One Show. I said, ‘OK, give me one of the guests I’ve interviewed’ and he was able to tell me.
“We all mingled a bit and started to chat that night. He was heading off to Ukraine with England at the time.
“He called me on my way home which I thought was quite charming.”
She adds: “Over the next 10 days we spoke on the mobile loads. The next time we met was a couple of weeks later so by then I felt like I knew him.
“We’d done a very old-fashioned courtship. It was lovely.”
Laughing, Christine says: “We’re very grateful we went along that night or we might never have met
“It’s one of those dates, we always go, ‘That’s our anniversary’, it’s alongside all the milestones in our life, for ever.”
- Catch up with Christine’s full interview and all previous episodes in Life Changing Stories, available every Thursday on all streaming platforms.
