Innholdsfortegnelse for 11-Jan-2016 i Woman's Own

Happy Birthday to the Duchess of Cambridge, who turns 34 on 9 January. And it’s likely to be a fun one, with rumours that Adele, Kate’s favourite singer, has been booked to perform at her royal party. But then, Kate has every reason to celebrate after such a big year in 2015, with the birth of Princess Charlotte. In these recent pictures taken at Kensington Palace, Kate’s seen posing with Charlotte, eight months, and big brother George, two – and quite rightly looking every inch the very proud mum! Join us online Head to our fabulous website, womansown.co.uk,  to get all the latest celeb gossip, great competitions and deals, plus beauty, fashion, easy recipes and health tips.…

It looks as though actress Pauline Quirke has fallen off her diet wagon once again after she was spotted ordering from one of her favourite takeaways. The actress has been battling with her weight in the public eye for years, famously dropping to a size 12 from a 28 in 2011 after following a diet programme. But despite all the hard work to stay slim, it appears as if old habits are proving hard to break. Health warning ‘Pauline’s comfort eating again,’ a source close to the star said. ‘She’s finished filming for a while and says she’s giving herself a diet break and loves her favourite takeaway, Subway.’ Last year, Woman’s Own reported how Pauline, 56, was struggling to stick to a diet, finding the lure of tempting snacks…

When you ask most people what the ideal age gap between children is, it’s likely the answer will range from two years to five. Even psychologists seem to agree – it’s a time when the older child is more independent and less likely to regress when a baby comes home. But what about parents who opt to do something different? Here, two mums explain why they’d never change their family dynamic… ‘My girls are best friends’ It was 2011 and I was in a cafe bouncing my seven-month-old baby girl Clementine on my knee when a woman sidled up to me, two young kids in tow. ‘Enjoy that while you can,’ she laughed. ‘When you have your second one it’s so much harder.’ What she, of course, didn’t know was…

1 Delete your social media connection. Watching what your ex is up to on Facebook isn’t going to help you get over him. Hard as it is, try to limit all routes to him. 2 Don’t blame yourself endlessly. Even if you were the one at fault, ‘what ifs’ are pointless. You need to accept that you can’t change what has happened. 3 Move on. This doesn’t mean find someone new, it means getting on with your life. Go out, see friends, try a hobby – don’t get stuck being heartbroken. 4 Deal with your feelings. Anger, misery, depression – don’t ignore how you feel. Talk it out with friends, write it down or find a counsellor. 5 Don’t tell yourself that’s it. No matter your circumstances, you will have…

WEBSITE OF THE WEEK  racgaragecompare.co.uk Six in 10 motorists say they worry about hidden costs when booking their car into a garage for an MOT service or repair. One in 10 find their bills end up being more expensive than the garage said they would be. Now the RAC’s new Garage Compare service reviews and checks prices at thousands of independent and franchised garages across the UK. 8 resolutions to make you richer by December! Keep finances in check over the next year with our dos and don’ts 1 I WILL…BE MORE CONSCIOUS OF MY SPENDING If you’ve got an Apple device, try a free app from Santander called Spendlytics. It analyses spending on Santander cards and compares up to 18 months of transactions with charts and graphics. Go to…

Nigella Lawson CAPRICORN (6 JANUARY) The TV cook’s marriage difficulties exploded when Pluto contacted her Capricorn sun. This year, Pluto moves on and puts all that behind her. She can rediscover joy in her career. Aries 21 Mar – 20 Apr It’s not the easiest week and now your ruler’s trucking through vengeful Scorpio, the trickier moments (Wednesday and Friday) may tempt you to lash out. It’s not really the most productive way of going about things. Don’t shoot yourself in the foot. For more call 0901 609 4780* Taurus 21 Apr – 20 May Did you bust your budget over Christmas? Are you worried about cash generally? If so, be aware that around Friday those anxieties will climax. So use the energy of the New Moon to take a…

How To Lose Weight Well MONDAYS, CHANNEL 4 Meet Dr Xand Van Tulleken and dietician Hala El-Shafie, who will be on hand as six dieters attempt diets that claim to be able to blitz the bulge. Do the claims stand up? BENIDORM SATURDAYS, ITV Get ready to travel back to our favourite Spanish resort as the cast of Benidorm return for a new series. Look out for some new faces around the pool too – with some extra special guests popping by for a day or two in the sun. The Getaway Car SATURDAYS, BBC1 Dermot O’Leary is back on Saturday night telly hosting his new show The Getaway Car . Watch as couples compete in a series of driving challenges that should…

PERIL WITH MERYL! One of my favourite red carpet moments of the year came at the premiere of Into The Woods. I told Meryl Streep I had a face only a mother could love, at which point she grabbed it and said, ‘You are beautiful!’ I felt like I’d been anointed… CANNES CAPER! This year’s Cannes Film Festival was one to remember for me, meeting Mad Max – Tom Hardy – at the world-famous Hotel Du Cap and having lunch in their ever-so chichi Eden-Roc restaurant. I felt like I was starring in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and when the bill came, believe me, I was tempted to try a life of crime on the Riviera! THE MOORE THE MERRIER! Ahead of her Oscar win, I got to meet Julianne Moore…

Silver fox Martin Kemp, 54, is best known for playing suave, scary gangsters or for making music with his band, Spandau Ballet. So when we saw that the star – who has two children, Harley Moon, 26, and Roman, 22, with former Wham! backing singer Shirlie Holliman, 53 – was laughing it up on the Birds Of A Feather set, we couldn’t resist calling. And he spilled all the gossip about his time with Linda Robson, Pauline Quirke and Lesley Joseph. One minute you’re on tour with Spandau, the next you’re filming Birds Of A Feather … It’s a bit crazy, but I like to keep my hand in, you know? Birds Of A Feather is great because I’ve known Pauline and Linda…

You’ve probably heard about strobing, as it’s taking the celeb world by storm. But let’s get something straight – strobing is just a glamorous word for highlighting. If you passed on the contouring trend, strobing is its easier-to-master cousin. Apply your chosen products to the cheekbones, Cupid’s bow, tear duct, brow bones and along the bridge of the nose to create dewiness on these key areas. Nars Illuminator in Copacabana, £23, is our go-to liquid highlighter, again and again. Apply it in small dots along the tops of your cheekbones and blend, blend, blend. The centre of your chin is not the place forall-out metallic shine. BareMinerals Mineral Veil Finishing Powder, £21, will tie in your whole look with a murmur of sheen here. An illuminating base like Erborian BB…

I’M SO UPSET THAT THEY DON’T WANT CHILDREN My son and daughter-in-law have recently told me that they don’t want kids. I feel completely crushed. He’s my only child and I feel they’re taking away my chance to be a gran. Every time we meet I tell them how amazing it is to have children in the hope they’ll change their minds, but now my son says if keep talking about it he won’t come round any more. He says it’s their decision, and I have to get used to it. But I worry that one day he’ll regret it. Claire, 56, Totnes It can be devastating to find out that something you’ve always hoped for isn’t going to happen, so I can see why you feel very hurt. You…

Roots & barley chicken soup SERVES 6 PREP TIME 5 MINS COOKING TIME 5 0 MINS YOU WILL NEED 1.5ltr chicken stock 4 chicken thighs on the bone, skinned and fat removed 1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped 2 small bay leaves and a few sprigs of thyme or rosemary 1kg mixed winter vegetables, such as carrot, turnip, swede, parsnip and celeriac 2 sticks celery 150g pearl barley Salt and freshly ground black pepper Freshly chopped parsley, to garnish HOW TO DO IT 1 Bring the stock to the boil, then add the chicken thighs, onion and herbs. Cover and simmer over a low heat for 20 mins until the meat is tender. 2 Peel and chop all the winter vegetables and trim and chop the celery. Remove the…

Helpful hosts I love using the chat rooms on the site while I play. The other members are so friendly and the chat-room hosts are a great help. They’re always there for you and will answer any questions you have, plus they’re hilarious, too! Sitting in my lounge in front of my computer, I logged in to my Woman’s Own Bingo account. I’d been a member for over two years and it’s always so much fun to play. I knew which games I liked, as well as other members and the chat-room hosts. I’d played bingo for years with my mother-in-law at our local club, but after she moved away to Andover, I didn’t really fancy going on my own. That’s why I joined Woman’s Own Bingo and,…

OUT OF THIS WORLD He’s known for his otherworldly dishes but Heston Blumenthal will be taking cooking to the final frontier in his latest TV show. In Heston’s Space Food this spring, he puts together the menu for British astronaut Tim Peake. He explained, ‘We’re creating dishes that will remind him of home even though he’ll be 400km away in space. The least I could do was make sure he had a bacon sarnie.’ WINTER wonderland! Prepare for plenty of après-ski action when The Jump returns at the end of this month with Davina McCall. But this time there’s a new twist, as contestants won’t just be mixing on the ice – they will be sharing a home too! When they move into their…

JACKIE STALLONE Yeah, Jackie! These two words were all it took for Sylvester’s high-maintenance mum to become a legend in 2005. RYLAN CLARK Rylan became everyone’s favourite CBBstar in 2013, thanks to the amount of time he spent running around in his pants! GEORGE GALLOWAY 2006 saw politician George ask Rula Lenska, ‘Would you like me to be the cat?’ Meow! LES DENNIS Poor Les won the nation’s sympathy in 2002 when he sat and chatted to his friends – the chickens. VANESSA FELTZ In the very first series, the star’s meltdown in a leopard-print dressing gown was TV gold.…

Katy became one of the most recognisable faces on telly after joining the Blue Peter team back in 1995 as a presenter. She stayed on the show for six years before moving on to front Live & Kicking and Top Of The Pops . Now 44, she is married to fellow TV presenter Trey Farley and mum to Kaya, nine, and Akira, eight. We caught up with Katy, who’s currently presenting regular slots on This Morning and fronts her own Heart FM breakfast show, to find out more What makes you happy? My family, completely – they’re just phenomenal. Marrying my husband 10 years ago was just a dream and my kids are amazing. They…

With her scarred skin, burnt scalp and missing right ear, Adele Bellis (top left) could be mistaken for a war victim or the survivor of an inferno. Yet Adele is just a normal 23-year-old who fell in love with the wrong person – and paid for it with the most devastating results. It was in August 2014 that Adele became a victim of a sick acid attack, by an ex-partner. ‘I was just crying and shouting, ‘I’m burning, I’m burning,’’ she recalls. Yet while shocking, her crime is far from unique. The horrifically scarred faces of the other women on this page – Carla Whitlock, Tara Quigley and Naomi Oni – are just some of the many victims who have also suffered this frightening new crime. With corrosive chemicals easily…

30 MINUTE WORKOUTS A beneficial workout would be at least half an hour of jogging, swimming or any exercise that gets you out of breath. HOW IT WORKS By dumping the junk and eating largely unprocessed foods with lots of vitamins and minerals, you’re correcting any small nutritional gaps that may have been slowing down your metabolism. High-fibre vegetables, plant-based food and lean proteins – which you’ll be eating a lot of – help you feel fuller with fewer calories. Carbs are moderated, not banned, with focus on healthier carb sources like whole grains and veg. The result? Blood sugar and insulin levels will fall, helping to control hunger. WHAT TO DO Enjoy three meals a day from our menus. On days you do a workout, you’re allowed a snack…

MUSIC THERAPY FOR… MENTAL HEALTH ILLNESSES Music therapy is recognised as an effective treatment for many conditions including depression, anxiety and dementia. Sessions include playing an instrument, singing, writing music and creating stories using sound. ‘Evidence shows it can dramatically reduce anxiety,’ says alternative therapy expert Professor Edzard Ernst. THE PROOF Long-term studies show that singing can improve conditions from stroke and autism to a stammer. THE COST Private one-to-one sessions from around £50. INFO The British Association For Music Therapists, bamt.org. REIKI FOR… CANCER, FATIGUE AND DEPRESSION Reiki is a Japanese technique in which the hands of have a healer to are said to release positive energy. You don’t remove your clothes and the practitioner places their hands on or above the body for two to five minutes, in…

THE MODEL CHINCHILLA It’s hard not to fall in love with Mr Bagel – whose name comes from his fondness for cream cheese. The chinchilla’s modelling duties include posing with tiny props and hats and have earned him thousands of fans. He’s even become the poster boy for pet adoption and the face of campaigns opposing the use of real fur. THE PIG WITH A BOOK DEAL His name is tongue-in-cheek, but Chris P. Bacon’s rise to fame is no joke. Born without the use of his back legs, the pig’s owner built him a frame with wheels – images of him learning to walk garnered hundreds of likes. Now fully grown, he’s often pictured in fancy dress and has been the subject of two books. SAY CHEESE! With his…

Live the moment I remember in the good old days when we used to make our own cars out of things we found in the garden and play with skipping ropes or hide and seek, all outdoors. These times are only memories now… everyone just seems to be on their phones, texting. Their minds are always elsewhere. Nancy Joynes, via Facebook Positive thinking It was lovely to read the story ‘We wouldn’t swap our Down’s syndrome babies’. Working in a care home I’ve seen parents who turn their back on kids because they don’t fit into the perfect mould. What they don’t realise is they’re walking away from some of the most wonderful children. It’s lovely to see these mothers being so positive. Gill Shaw, Manchester Stop comparing I really…

Actress Jessica Raine, 34, is going back in time to star in Jericho , ITV’s new period drama set in Yorkshire in the 1870s. She plays widow Annie, forced to settle in a makeshift railway town with her two teenage children. It was a tough life for women like Annie – how difficult was filming? That was challenging too. Especially those opening scenes, it felt like we were trudging across the Moors for days! And in a very restrictive corset and with those big tapestry bags. But I wouldn’t have had it any other way, because it felt very true for Annie to be doing that. What did you do to master the accent? I had a meeting with a dialect coach, which was really helpful. Then…