Claudia Winkleman began her glittering television career as a personal assistant for a fashion magazine, and she was once reportedly caught sleeping on the job.
Claudia Winkleman’s former boss says their time together was a total disaster. While Claudia is now a popular TV presenter, hosting shows such as Strictly Come Dancing and The Traitors, she was once a PA at a glossy magazine.
At the time of her appointment as the “clothes-obsessed” fashion editor at Tatler magazine, journalist Kate Reardon was just 21. She and Claudia, who was Claudia’s assistant at the time, shared a closet there.
Kate however says Claudia, who has appeared on TV screens for over three decades, was “spectacularly bad” at her job. On one occasion Kate even claims Claudia was caught “sleeping on a sunbed” while on a fashion shoot on a yacht, after colleagues became concerned she might have fallen overboard.
Writing in The Times, Kate said: “At one point Claudia Winkleman was my PA. She was spectacularly bad at the job. Once we were doing a fashion shoot on a yacht in Thailand and the whole crew was beavering away in the oppressive heat and humidity. “Where’s Claudia?” Nope, no sign of her.
We weren’t aware of it because we were too focused on the model’s hair, so I started to feel nauseous, convinced she had drowned and had fallen overboard.
She was found lying peacefully on a sunbed, where the search party eventually converged on the top deck where they had discovered her. She was so adorable that we all quietly stooped away and began the shoot, which seems absurd now. ”
Claudia, who studied art history at the University of Cambridge, launched her broadcasting career in 1992 when she began appearing in BBC Two’s Holiday. The series culminated in a special where she spent 34 days, reporting from Japan, India, Costa Rica and Dubai.
She also appeared on shows such as This Morning as a dating connoisseur. However she landed her first major role a decade later, presenting on Central Weekend before going on to work on BBC Three.
When Sir Bruce Forsythe was unavailable, she appeared as a relief presenter on Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two in 2004. She then joined Tess Daly in the results shows before permanently occupying the position in 2014.
The Traitors, a highly acclaimed murder-mystery series that will return for its fourth series in January, has been her main focus since 2022. The BBC is currently looking for their replacements, so Claudia and Tess have confirmed that the current season of Strictly will be their last.
In a joint statement on Instagram, the duo said: “We have loved working as a duo and hosting Strictly has been an absolute dream. We were always going to leave together and now feels like the right time.
Source: Mirror
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