FIRST IMPRESSIONS: ANGELA RIPPON
What are you working on?
ITV’s new game show, Amazing Greys.
When are you at your happiest?
When I get to spend quality time with my friends and family.
What is your greatest fear?
Making a complete idiot of myself.
What is your earliest memory?
The very first time I met my father. I was born when he was away at war, but I think I remember him coming in and looking at me in my cot.
What do you most dislike about yourself?
I’m a tidiness freak. I once spent a weekend with Jilly Cooper – I was the first down in the morning and tidied up her entire kitchen and did all the dishes.
Who has been your greatest influence?
My dad. I didn’t see him until I was three years old, so I think he spent the rest of his life trying to make up for the years he’d missed. My mother couldn’t have any more children after me and my dad, a Royal Marine, would have loved to have had a son. Even though he wanted me to be a proper lady he also passed on to me the kind of things he would’ve passed on to a son, qualities such as selfreliance and self-belief. He taught me to be strong and stand up for myself. I think they’ve probably stood me in very good stead for a life in television, which is so male-dominated.
What is your most treasured possession?
My teddy bear. It is at least 100 years old. Once, when we were moving house, my mother said, ‘That’s got to go’ and I said, ‘No’, and she said, ‘Why not?’ I said ‘Teddy knows all my secrets.’ I couldn’t allow him to fall into anyone else’s hands.
What trait do you most deplore in others?
Self-centredness.
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
My hair. It’s been the bane of my life. It’s baby-fine and dead straight.
What is your all-time favourite book?
Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice. I had to do it for English literature classes and loved it.
How about your most favourite film?
Shirley MacLaine in the musical Sweet Charity.
What is your favourite piece of music?
Shostakovich’s piano concerto No. 2.
Your favourite meal?
Some friends in Greece are fishermen and I spent the day on a boat with them. We caught langoustines, lots of fish and in the evening, cooked the most stunning fish soup.
Who would you most like to come to dinner?
Joséphine Bonaparte – she’s fascinating. Kenneth Williams because he was absolutely brilliant and Jane Austen – a great observer of people.
What is the nastiest thing anyone has ever said to you?
Years ago, I was going to a party and someone who was incredibly drunk said, ‘You’re such a snob’.
What is your secret vice?
Shoes – I own lots of them.
Do you write thank-you notes?
Yes, I do.
Which phrase do you most over-use?
‘Darling’, when I can’t remember someone’s name.
What single thing would improve the quality of your life?
Owning a dog. I’ve had pets all my life and I do miss the companionship of dogs. When I retire, the first thing I’ll do is get myself a dog.
Can you tell me one thing people might not know about you?
I’ve been around for so long and people have written about me so often that I don’t think there’s anything left!
What would you like your epitaph to read?
‘She was a good friend’.
Angela Rippon hosts ITV’s Amazing Greys with Paddy McGuinness on Saturday evenings.
ITV’s new game show, Amazing Greys.
When are you at your happiest?
When I get to spend quality time with my friends and family.
What is your greatest fear?
Making a complete idiot of myself.
What is your earliest memory?
The very first time I met my father. I was born when he was away at war, but I think I remember him coming in and looking at me in my cot.
What do you most dislike about yourself?
I’m a tidiness freak. I once spent a weekend with Jilly Cooper – I was the first down in the morning and tidied up her entire kitchen and did all the dishes.
Who has been your greatest influence?
My dad. I didn’t see him until I was three years old, so I think he spent the rest of his life trying to make up for the years he’d missed. My mother couldn’t have any more children after me and my dad, a Royal Marine, would have loved to have had a son. Even though he wanted me to be a proper lady he also passed on to me the kind of things he would’ve passed on to a son, qualities such as selfreliance and self-belief. He taught me to be strong and stand up for myself. I think they’ve probably stood me in very good stead for a life in television, which is so male-dominated.
What is your most treasured possession?
My teddy bear. It is at least 100 years old. Once, when we were moving house, my mother said, ‘That’s got to go’ and I said, ‘No’, and she said, ‘Why not?’ I said ‘Teddy knows all my secrets.’ I couldn’t allow him to fall into anyone else’s hands.
What trait do you most deplore in others?
Self-centredness.
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
My hair. It’s been the bane of my life. It’s baby-fine and dead straight.
What is your all-time favourite book?
Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice. I had to do it for English literature classes and loved it.
How about your most favourite film?
Shirley MacLaine in the musical Sweet Charity.
What is your favourite piece of music?
Shostakovich’s piano concerto No. 2.
Your favourite meal?
Some friends in Greece are fishermen and I spent the day on a boat with them. We caught langoustines, lots of fish and in the evening, cooked the most stunning fish soup.
Who would you most like to come to dinner?
Joséphine Bonaparte – she’s fascinating. Kenneth Williams because he was absolutely brilliant and Jane Austen – a great observer of people.
What is the nastiest thing anyone has ever said to you?
Years ago, I was going to a party and someone who was incredibly drunk said, ‘You’re such a snob’.
What is your secret vice?
Shoes – I own lots of them.
Do you write thank-you notes?
Yes, I do.
Which phrase do you most over-use?
‘Darling’, when I can’t remember someone’s name.
What single thing would improve the quality of your life?
Owning a dog. I’ve had pets all my life and I do miss the companionship of dogs. When I retire, the first thing I’ll do is get myself a dog.
Can you tell me one thing people might not know about you?
I’ve been around for so long and people have written about me so often that I don’t think there’s anything left!
What would you like your epitaph to read?
‘She was a good friend’.
Angela Rippon hosts ITV’s Amazing Greys with Paddy McGuinness on Saturday evenings.