Charlotte Hawkins has revealed a secret “pain” of being a host on Good Morning Britain, as she prepares to once again present Andre Rieu’s Christmas concert
Think of Christmas. There’s tinsel on the tree, twinkling lights in the high street and enough mince pies to feed a small country. For some, the festive season starts as soon as Halloween is over, but for many, it doesn’t begin until you’ve seen Andre Rieu’s Christmas Concert at the cinema, hosted by Charlotte Hawkins.
Charlotte has been working with Andre for many years and is still in awe of his ability to pull together such an amazing concert. “I think he is just a genius at pulling together so many different and special performers and making such a wonderful, huge, massive, magnificent show,” she tells us.
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“His music really has the power to move people and to reach out of the screen. Not only is he iconic, he’s an amazing musician that I’m lucky enough to see in action, and I’m just in awe of him every time I see him.”
During the show, Andre and his performers – reaching nearly 1000 people – will play his pieces along with all the festive favourites, from All I Want For Christmas Is You to O Come All Ye Faithful. It will be recorded from a concert hall in Maastricht, which Charlotte refers to as a “winter wonderland”, and is available to watch in cinemas on 6 and 7 December.
“I always think there’s something really special about actually listening to live Christmas music,” Charlotte explains when asked why she loves getting to host the show for UK audiences. “It really gets you in that festive feel.”
One member of the Hawkins family is already in the festive mood. “My daughter started her Christmas countdown already!” At the time of this discussion, Halloween hadn’t even happened yet. But 10-year-old Ella Rose is more excited by the presents under the tree than chocolate in jack-o-lanterns.
And having a child around makes the holiday even more special. “It’s just so lovely for the families having younger members around, isn’t it? Because they sort of still channel that excitement, that magic.”
“And I try to make sure that we go to as many sort of Christmassy things as possible,” Charlotte adds. Every year, the whole Hawkins clan dives into festive traditions, including their local Christingle service. Held on Christmas Eve, the bleak midwinter night is lit up by the warm glow of candles stuck in oranges, as children and their families sing classic carols.
When surrounded by that kind of fairytale scene, it’s easy to see why Charlotte loves the season so much. “It’s such a magical time of year. There is more of that sense of connection, that sense of community, that sense of coming together.”
Christmas isn’t the only thing Ella Rose gets excited about. She loves hearing about her mother’s job as a presenter on Good Morning Britain, particularly when she gets to head onto set too. From what Charlotte has seen, Ella Rose has the makings of a great journalist in her.
“She just loves it if she gets the opportunity to pop into the newsroom,” Charlotte explains. She recalls a bank holiday a few years ago, when George Ezra was on the show. Knowing her daughter was a superfan of the Budapest singer, she asked if Ella Rose could go in and meet him. The producers had a better idea. “They said, ‘Does she want to ask him some questions?’”
Ella Rose proceeded to do half the interview on TV, aged only eight. “She just took it all in her stride. And she did a brilliant interview and got way more out of him than we did anyway!” It gave her the interviewing bug, and she’d been asking her mum when they’ll get Taylor Swift on the show ever since.
Charlotte adores her job too. “I love being a part of the programme. It really does feel like a family, which is special. It’s such a privilege to wake people up in the morning and get to tell them what’s going on in the world first.”
And Charlotte has been doing it for Good Morning Britain for over a decade. She loves her job, even if she has to wake up at 2.45am to do it. “That’s quite a tough start to the day,” she laughs. “But you all sort of bond together as members of this early risers club because everybody feels the pain.”
Members of the Early Risers Club survive with numerous cups of tea and coffee, and by swapping tips on when to have a nap during the day. Charlotte’s own tip is to wear a bright colour – “If it’s a grey day, if you’re feeling like not quite 100 percent yourself, put something bright on and it kind of changes your outlook.”
Going to bed early is, of course, key, but it’s a little difficult on Wednesdays and Thursdays at the moment. Why? That’s when GMB co-star Kate Garraway is on The Celebrity Traitors. “We’re watching Kate at the moment on Celebrity Traitors. So everyone’s sort of saying, ‘Are you staying up to watch Celebrity Traitors or are you watching it first thing in the morning?’” Charlotte has ended up doing half and half – watching the first bit in the evening and finishing it off on her way into work.
Being such a stalwart of the TV presenting world has led Charlotte to brilliant places, including a film set. In 2015, she appeared in the film Burnt, as a breakfast show host who was interviewing an intense chef, played by Bradley Cooper. That was a career highlight for Charlotte, who grew up dreaming of treading the boards. Though her life went down another route, she enjoyed being able to put her acting skills to use.
It’s a great example to set for Ella Rose. “I say to my daughter, ‘Never give up on your dreams’. Because even if you go down a different path, you never know where you’ll end up.”
Source: Mirror
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