Beverley Turner
Stylish and straight-talking, Beverley Turner is hosting BBC1’s new live property show. And, as Ben Lerwill discovers, she can’t wait to get back to Chiswick…
Above: Beverley Turner
You certainly couldn’t accuse Beverley Turner of leading an idle life. As well as hosting Homes Live, BBC1’s daily property programme, the Chiswick resident is also writing a novel and juggling a packed diary of media commitments. And all that’s after you factor in a hectic domestic life – Beverley is married to Olympic oarsman and gold medallist James Cracknell – with an energetic four-year-old son who is currently in the habit of performing one-man musicals around the family home.
While Bev (she’s definitely a ‘Bev’) doesn’t exactly have time to burn, there are no complaints. ‘James and I have now been together for seven years and we’ve had a lot of adjusting to do – we’ve both been so busy,’ she tells me over a lunchtime coffee. ‘But I think the work-life balance is finally just right. And even though I’m going to be based up in Glasgow for the BBC show, W4 is definitely home.’ She glances outside at the busy street and laughs. ‘They really would have to take me kicking and screaming to make me leave Chiswick!’
Homes Live marks something of a departure from her previous television experience. Bev is probably still best known for the three years she spent following the jet-setting Grand Prix circuit. She walked the pit lanes and attended the glamorous parties for ITV, interviewing everyone who was anyone – and then wrote a candid, less than flattering ‘insider’s’ exposé of the Formula 1 world – more of which later. She has also co-hosted the Saturday morning sports and entertainment show on BBC Five Live with Eamonn Holmes and presented Taste, Sky’s popular cookery programme.
So how has Bev ended up fronting Homes Live? ‘There’s a story there actually,’ she smiles. ‘James and I bought a house in Chiswick and we fully expected to renovate it within six months. In the meantime we carried on living in our flat around the corner in Grove Park – in fact, it took two years. It was a total nightmare! That meant, when it came to doing the screen tests for Homes Live, I’d just come off the back of all the problems and had first-hand knowledge of what I was talking about. It was very weird. Those days when I’d been standing in the kitchen with floorboards and builders everywhere and thinking, “there has to be a reason why God is putting me through this!” And a few months later, there was.’
Bev will be working on the show with Matt Allwright of Rogue Traders fame. ‘We’ll be going out live for an hour every weekday and that should make it spontaneous,’ she continues. ‘I loved doing Five Live and I’m hoping that we’ll have the same sense of adrenaline.’ Being live, however, does bring dangers. ‘Matt is very funny – I don’t know how I’m going to hold it together. And sometimes I speak before I think so that’s going to be a bit of a minefield. I’ve had to get out of the habit of swearing too!’It’s a decade since Bev moved to London from her native Manchester. After graduating from the city’s University with a First in English she became a freelance journalist, initially focusing on her childhood passion of swimming. In time she moved onto general sports features and that, in turn, unexpectedly opened other doors. ‘I was interviewing Dwight Yorke just after his transfer to Man Utd,’ Bev recalls. ‘His agent was there and he asked me if I’d ever thought about TV. He knew the head of ITV Sport, who was looking to recruit someone to lead the channel’s NBA basketball coverage. Fortunately, I’d done some modelling and felt quite comfortable in front of the camera – and my career took off from there.’
Having proved herself as a sports presenter (she also covered the Tour de France), Bev was offered a coveted role on the ITV Formula 1 team. After three years, countless yacht parties and several lifetimes’ supply of A-list encounters, she chronicled her experiences in The Pits: The Real World of Formula One. Typically, Bev didn’t pull her punches. ‘The book was a bridge-burning exercise, a way of putting the whole thing to bed. I was saying, “I’ve had my fill of F1.” I found the sport very shallow. Some of my views have since softened, but there’s something unpalatable about that level of excess. I’m actually interviewing Bernie Ecclestone (the F1 supremo) at a charity event in the New Year. Apparently he specifically asked for me – I’m worried that he might turn up with a lynch mob!’ And what, I wonder, is her take on the current state of Grand Prix racing? ‘Nothing that ever happens surprises me. Lewis Hamilton is so good for F1 but the McLaren scandal is going to do some damage – and just when people were turning on and getting interested again. I don’t think Bernie will be very happy, but then again, if they have been spying… It’s just a soap opera, isn’t it?’
In fact, while exercise is something of an obsession in the Cracknell household, professional sport no longer holds quite the same fascination for Bev herself. While she keeps an eye on results, her perspective has altered. ‘Your interests change,’ she reflects. ‘I’ve become pretty disillusioned with football over the years too, although I still love the major events. I now enjoy minority sports, such as gymnastics, where people compete for the glory, not just money. The other thing that fascinates me is the pull that footballers’ wives have over their men – they seem to have so much control. I’d love to know what that’s all about. Maybe footballers are just simple souls?’
Bev’s own husband doesn’t appear so easily tamed. When James competed in the 2006 Atlantic Rowing Race with TV personality Ben Fogle (they survived a terrifying capsize to come in third), he was away for almost two months. ‘In hindsight, it was the best thing he ever did,’ she jokes. ‘It made me realise that I’m married to someone who’s not quite right in the head, but if he didn’t do those sort of challenges he wouldn’t be the same person. It’s worth being with a physical maniac for the good things about him.’
Despite all her other responsibilities, Bev has recently started writing a novel. It is already attracting interest from publishers and she hopes to have the first draft ready by next spring. ‘It’s about middle class marriages and motherhood,’ she reveals. ‘Chiswick life exposed, almost!’ If her passion for the local patch is anything to go by, readers can expect a positive portrait. She greets any mention of W4 with effusive praise, be it the restaurants, the pubs or the general atmosphere of the place.
‘You really do get the best of both worlds – the area’s gorgeous and it’s such a pretty stretch of river. These days, I’m reluctant to go elsewhere; if someone I know moves to Islington, it’s a case of “bye then, have a nice life!” We’ve got a lot of family and friends close by, there are so many excellent places to eat – The Pilot, The Devonshire, Kew Grill, Annie’s – and even though Chiswick is near central London you can still convince yourself you’re in the countryside.’ Bev was also much taken with this summer’s High Road House concert in Chiswick House grounds. ‘It was definitely my night of the year. Lily Allen, Sophie Ellis Bextor and The Feeling – my hangover lasted for days. They have to do it again.’So there certainly doesn’t seem to be any imminent prospect of Bev and her family upping sticks – and that’s in spite of her nearest and dearest. ‘James always has itchy feet,’ she explains, mock-exasperated. ‘Almost on the day we finally moved into our house, after waiting two years, he turned round and said, “Perhaps we should live in the country?” I thought I was going to kill him!’
Homes Live is broadcast 10-11am weekday mornings. The Pits: The Real World of Formula One is published by Atlantic Books (£8.99 p/b)