She’s long been looked up to as bravery and positivity personified – and now, Katie Piper is on a mission to help the next generation find their inner courage. The Loose Women presenter and best-selling author has just released her first children’s book, All You Need, with daughters Belle, eight, and Penelope, five, acting as editors.
“They helped me write the book and they rejected the first draft,” says Katie, 39. “They were like, ‘No, Mummy, we want to change it – we want it to be more about bravery.’ I said, ‘OK, you’re the target audience so I’m listening.’ They were like consultants throughout the whole process.”
Her new venture follows the character Teeny Mouse on a fun but nerve-racking journey, demonstrating with positive affirmations how all you need is courage and a bit of faith to try new things, no matter how scary they feel. It stems from her own parenting journey, part of which has been reading daily affirmations to her children – who she shares with husband Richard James Sutton – since before they were born.
“It’s something I’ve always done – even while I was pregnant,” she says. “It’s always been part of my daily life. As we all know, unfortunately, when we get to a certain age we start affirming negative things, like, ‘I’m not going to be good at this’, ‘They’re not going to like me’ and ‘I don’t belong here’.
“I wanted to make sure the positive ones were always present to combat the negative ones. For example, Belle’s starting to learn French at school and if she doesn’t understand it, or if she’s struggling in maths, they can be so reassuring. We use the book at home as a prompt. It’s helped open up dialogue to talk about their feelings and emotions.”
With the book aimed at kids aged three to five, Katie’s focus is on those fundamental early years that shape a child’s life – a passion shared by the Princess of Wales, who launched her Shaping Us campaign at the start of the month. Although Katie didn’t attend the glitzy ceremony, she tells us she did receive an invitation.
“I was invited to be part of it but unfortunately I was in America filming a new documentary,” Katie says. “I managed to look at it all on Instagram and I got a bit of FOMO. It was great to be invited and even though I wasn’t there, it was still really brilliant to see how the princess is using her platform to shine a light on this issue. Children’s mental health really suffered during lockdown, as did their literacy, because their education was disrupted.
“What Kate’s doing is fantastic and I hope with my book I can also draw children back to not just reading but enjoying reading, and their parents using that as a time to bond with their kids.”
Katie had to say goodbye to her daughters for 10 days to film her new W documentary, Babies Behind Bars, in which she investigates women who are pregnant while in prison. And she admits juggling work and home life hasn’t become any easier.
“It’s the longest I’ve ever left them,” she says. “It was really difficult and they were really grumpy. When I wanted to FaceTime, they didn’t want to. They were using their devices to play games. I deal with mum guilt terribly and end up spoiling them, which my mum then tells me off for.”
However, it was the kids’ turn to spoil their parents recently. “On the night before Valentine’s Day the girls said, ‘We don’t want you to get up before us,’” Katie says. “We said, ‘We’ve both got work and it’s half term, you’ve got to go to holiday camp, so we have to get you ready.’ They were like, ‘No, no, no, we’re going to get up before you.’ And they did! They got up at 5.45am, got themselves dressed, did each other’s hair and had breakfast. That’s the first time they’ve ever done that.
“And they made all these arts and crafts things from stuff in their playroom – a little Valentine’s Day card, these little pouches and hearts and pictures of us. It was so lovely.”
Belle now shares her name with Katie’s Loose Women co-star Stacey Solomon ’s new arrival.
“I saw it on Instagram and I was like, ‘Awww, that’s my eldest!’” Katie says. “It’s becoming such a popular name, especially if you’re a Disney fan. For me, I lived in France and it was the French meaning of the name beautiful. It’s what I called my first book and I knew our daughter was going to bring a lot of beauty into our lives before I even met her, so it wasn’t about her looks but about how beautiful it is to bring a life into this world. It had a real sentimental meaning for me. It’s a lovely name.”
Work-wise, Katie – who will turn 40 in October – is more in demand than ever. She’ll return with a second series of her Sunday morning programme, Katie Piper’s Breakfast Show, this summer.
She’s delighted to be bringing star power to ITV mornings, but finding the right work-life balance is important to her, too.
“I’m grateful for my career and I love having all these opportunities. But lockdown taught me some of the most important things are at home, in the calm and the stillness. I don’t want to constantly be that person that’s onto the next thing. I want to live in the present and bask in Teeny Mouse and savour it. Too often, we do something and park it and we’re like, ‘What next?’ I don’t think that’s a good approach.”
She adds, “I’ll be really grateful to see 40. There are lots of people who don’t get to, so it’s a real privilege. I’ve started drinking celery juice, just because I’m so easily influenced – I saw someone do it on Instagram. I’m big into supplements, too, because my diet is so up and down. I take vitamins every day – gummies for my hair, skin and nails, gut gummies and a basic multivitamin. Then, if my day unravels and I’m eating a BLT with a gin and tonic, I’ve had my vitamins and don’t feel so bad.”
All You Need (SPCK Publishing) by Katie Piper OBE is out now
