Former Love Island host Laura Whitmore admits she still gets starstruck – even with some of the celebrities she now counts as friends.
The Dublin star, 37, who has daughter Stevie, two, with Scots comedian Iain Stirling, will present her own “bucket list” chat show on ITV from this Sunday.
She’s been interviewing famous people since 2008 when she joined MTV. Since then she has interviewed huge names including Rihanna, Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez, Harry Styles and Robert Downey Jr.
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Now famous in her own right Laura, counts the former One Direction stars as pals – especially fellow Irish celebrity Niall Horan – as well as the likes of Spice Girl Emma Bunton and TV presenters Denise van Outen and Stacey Dooley.
She admitted: “I’m constantly being starstruck.
“I’m even starstruck by people I know quite well. You’re just attempting to pretend you’re not and trying to be low key about it.
“It never goes away and you hope it never does.”
Interviewing will be the easiest part of hosting a new show for Laura.
Her first guests are Diversity dancer turned TV presenter Jordan Banjo and Irish singer Cian Ducrot.
Laura, who hosted a Sunday morning radio show on BBC Radio 5 Live from 2018 to 2022, said: “The first interview I ever did was with Coldplay.
“But then when I was doing radio, one of the first people I interviewed was Mary Robinson, the first female president of Ireland.
“She did my radio show and, for me, she’s such a huge inspiration as a woman and coming from my background.”
Giving up her Sunday will be easy for Laura as for the last few years she has been doing the radio show, a four-month stint on the West End on 2:22: A Ghost Story and Love Island Aftersun.
She said: “For me, Sunday is work. All of my friends are like, ‘Let’s go to the pub. Let’s have a roast’. I haven’t done that for years.”
She has called having her own lifestyle show on Sunday mornings as “kind of a dream and an honour” and her own chat show as “one on the bucket list”.
The show will be a mix of chat, artists and music.
Laura said: “I just want to have fun and not overthink it too much.”
She would love to have ET star Drew Barrymore, who has had her own chat show since 2020, as a guest.
She said: “One of my biggest inspirations is Drew Barrymore. I’m a huge fan. I love her and I love her show that she does.”
Laura stunned Love Island fans in 2022 when she announced she was quitting the show after two years.
But it has given her space to do what she has always dreamed of. As well as the chat show she will also be fronting a new documentary series which reports claim will address taboo subjects and issues facing women.
She said: “It’s exciting and terrifying.”
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