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After starring as a panellist on Loose Women for four years, the singer said her husband begged her to quit

A former Loose Women panellist has spilled the beans on why she left the hit ITV show, revealing her husband’s plea for her to step down.

Celebrated opera singer Lesley Garrett, who has serenaded royalty including King Charles and the late Queen during her impressive 45-year career, is also known for her stints on television favourites like Strictly Come Dancing and Loose Women.

After sharing her views on the daytime talk show for four years, Lesley has now disclosed that it was her husband, Peter Christian, a GP by profession, who influenced her decision to leave.

“[It’s] the only time he’s ever asked me to stop doing something,” she told the Daily Mail.

“He said, ‘At the surgery I’ve got ten minutes with each patient. And eight minutes is taken up with what you’ve said the day before. I’m worried I’m going to misdiagnose somebody, so please could you stop?'”

It is not the first time Lesley expressed her family’s fears about her time on the topical programme. In 2011, she said her parents asked her to “give it a rest” for a while.

“My mum and dad said, ‘Do you think you could just give it a rest for a bit because we can’t go down the shops at the moment without somebody saying, ‘What have you been up to?'”

Despite the pressure, Lesley admitted, “But I enjoy it so much on the show. It’s the best fun you can ever have.”

Now at 70, Lesley is gearing up for her summer concert, leaving fans to wonder if this performance might be the last chance for fans to see her.

Speaking to the Sunday Express, Lesley hinted at hanging up her microphone soon to enjoy a quieter life with her partner in the south of France.

On the topic of retirement, she remarked: “I do think about retiring, because I don’t want to go on when I’m not as good as I was.”

Lesley said: “I want to quit while I’m ahead. I don’t want to carry on past my sell-by date. My voice is changing, as voices do. It’s still beautiful in the middle, but I can’t get as high as I used to.”

She explained: “Every season I think could be my last. This one I seriously think could be my last year, because I am 70 and it seems like a very round number – I’ve been doing this for exactly 45 years.”

If Lesley decides to retire, she acknowledges that members of the Royal Family might miss her performances.

Reflecting on Royal engagements, the South Yorkshire-born vocalist shared: “I have sung for King Charles and met him several times. I sang for both the King and Queen recently.

Victoria Beckham has taken to Instagram to share an adorable message from her husband David amid reports Brooklyn told his parents he ‘wants no contact with them’

Victoria Beckham has taken to Instagram to share an adorable message from her husband David amid a devastating time for the pair. It comes after the couple’s eldest son has been locked in a bitter feud with his family allegedly over wife Nicola Peltz.

David and Victoria have put on a brave face throughout the ordeal, having attended a number of events including David Beckham’s lavish 50th birthday party last month. Despite the arrival of a number of A-Listers, his eldest son Brooklyn and his wife Nicola were nowhere to be seen. They also failed to acknowledge the star’s big day on social media.

Now, Victoria has shared an adorable message from her husband, telling her 32.9 million Instagram followers that he “really does look after me.”

Taking to her Instagram story on Thursday morning, the former Spice Girl, 51, posted a picture of her Victoria Beckham Beauty tumbler cup with a pink post-it note stuck on. The message, from David, read: “I Love u… Drink for energy focus + Gut xxx”. The star had also drawn a heart on the note.

The sweet message comes after it was reported that Brooklyn Beckham’s feud with his parents had notched up a devastating gear. Reports suggest he wanted no contact with them and is allegedly ignoring their messages.

Last week, it was announced that the former Manchester United player would be receiving a knighthood in the King’s Birthday Honours list after years of ‘being snubbed’. However, he reportedly didn’t tell Brooklyn about the achievement, with him reportedly finding out through the media.

Sources close to the 26-year-old told Page Six that he was thrilled his dad was finally receiving the honour. However, another source close to Brooklyn told the publication: “Brooklyn told his family he wants no contact and he’s not responding to those that try to connect.”

Yet a separate Brooklyn source denied the claim, saying: “This seems to be another deliberate attempt to misrepresent the truth, and it only serves to distract from this honor being bestowed on Brooklyn’s father.”

The Mirror has reached out to Brooklyn and Victoria and David’s reps for comment.

Last year, the couple celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary by re-wearing their iconic purple outfits, which sent fans into a frenzy in 1999. Fans have been following the couple since 1997, who have never been afraid to show their love towards one another.

They can expect to see even more adorable moments from the couple in Victoria’s upcoming Netflix docuseries, which will follow her day to day as the creative director of her fashion and beauty brands.

Speaking on David’s involvement in the series to Bloomberg, Posh Spice said: “Well, he might end up on the cutting-room floor. I mean, who knows?”

Katie Price, 47, was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer while she was pregnant with her eldest son, Harvey

Katie Price has opened up about her battle with a rare form of cancer that she was diagnosed with while pregnant with her son Harvey.

The 47-year-old former glamour model, who became pregnant in 2002 after a brief fling with ex-Premier League star Dwight Yorke, was told by doctors that the stress of her pregnancy could have triggered the development of leiomyosarcoma, commonly referred to as LMS.

Just 11 weeks after discovering her son Harvey Price had Prader-Willi Syndrome and was blind, Katie was diagnosed with the uncommon cancer. She shared her ordeal on Katherine Ryan’s podcast What’s My Age Again?, revealing that the cancer developed on her hand.

LMS is a type of soft tissue sarcoma with a 50 per cent survival rate at an advanced stage. Katie initially learned of the lump on her hand when a manicurist noticed it, but two doctors initially dismissed it as harmless.

However, she was later advised to have the growth removed and underwent a biopsy at Nuffield Hospital in Brighton, where the lump was excised, reports Plymouth Live.

In conversation with comedian Katherine Ryan, Katie recounted: “While I was pregnant with Harvey I got cancer. I didn’t know that until, because they couldn’t do all the scans, after.

“It was in my hand, they took it out, it was called leiomyosarcoma. Apparently I got that from being pregnant, the stress of it.”

She recalled informing her mother about her diagnosis in a casual manner, saying: “So when I phoned my mum, I just remember going: ‘Mum, just to let you know, they found cancer’. I was so flippant like that because so much had already happened to me by then.”

She explained: “It was just a, ‘Yeah, this has happened now’, ‘Yeah, that’s happened now’. I think about it and then I’m just like, oh, well, you just got to get on with it.”

After her diagnosis, Katie had to attend regular check-ups following the removal of the growth. At the time, she described Harvey as her “inspiration” during her health scare.

According to Sarcoma UK, there are around 525 cases of LMS each year in the United Kingdom. The condition affects women more than men, with the median age of diagnosis being 64.

The prognosis is generally positive, with around 79% of women and 90% of men surviving the condition for at least a year. Treatment options often involve surgery, radiotherapy, or chemotherapy.

Katie went on to have two more children, Junior and Princess, with her ex-husband Peter Andre, whom she met on the set of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! in 2004 and married in 2005. However, they divorced in 2009.

Katie later married Alex Reid in 2010, but they divorced after just a year.

Karen Millen has come under fire after she sparked fury by claiming breastfeeding an infant after six months is ‘selfish’ as she appeared on Vanessa Feltz’s Channel 5 show

Fashion designer Karen Millen has come under fire after making a series of damaging claims about breastfeeding during her appearance on The Vanessa Show earlier this week.

Karen, 63, issued an apology via Vanessa Feltz’s eponymous Channel 5 programme after claiming it was ‘selfish’ for mothers to continue to breastfeed their children after six months of age – which sparked anger online.

As she appeared on the programme on Wednesday, Karen discussed a video of a mother breastfeeding her three-year-old. She said: “There’s no benefit, is there? For a child to be breastfed beyond six months, really. I think it’s quite a selfish thing on the mother’s part.”

READ MORE: JULIE DELAHAYE: ‘Karen Millen’s breastfeeding comments are an infuriating example of mum-shaming’

Vanessa, 63, asked: “Do you?” To which Karen replied: “I do, actually.” When asked why she feels that way, Karen explained: “Well, I just think, you know, that’s not good emotionally for that child.”

Karen’s comments sparked fury online, and she later issued an apology via The Vanessa Show. Vanessa shared a video on her Instagram to speak on behalf of Karen in an apology which has also come under fire. Vanessa said in the video: “Karen has faced some backlash for what she said yesterday on the show and some social media clips, too, have been quite antagonistic. And she’s now said she’d like to apologise and she’s given us this exclusive statement.”

The video then cut to footage of Karen who addressed the issue to the camera, as she said: “I know I’ve upset a lot of your viewers and that was not my intention. The question was aimed at a three-year-old being breastfed and my thoughts on that and my answers reflected that, not the subject of breastfeeding. I have three children and I breastfed all three of them up until six, seven months. Despite it being incredibly painful, I got mastitis each time and cracked and sore nipples. But I did it because I knew it was the best thing for them for at least six months. So, you know, I think my issue was more on the fact that, you know, as a baby breast milk is the best.

“And beyond being a baby, growing into being a toddler, I just found it more difficult to come to terms with how that would benefit a three-year-old toddler. So, anyway, everyone has their own personal choice and decision in these things and I respect that.

“And, as a woman to women, I do respect your choices and I do want to support you. So, my apologies once again. I hope you forgive me.”

The clip then cut to Vanessa again who added: “Now the World Health Organisation recommends infants are breastfed exclusively for the first six months of their lives and then up to the age of two and beyond that if it suits the family.”

Karen’s apology via Vanessa has sparked further outrage and done little to pacify mothers and breastfeeding experts – including celebrity mums. Comedian Katherine Ryan, who recently announced she is pregnant with her fourth child, jibed at Karen’s apology as she sarcastically wrote in the comments section: “Everyone knows: an infant baby becomes a FULL CALF at six months old and that’s when milk from a natural source (cow) becomes more suitable than milk from its mother of the same birth species. #science”.

While Ferne McCann shared a post about Karen’s comments on her own Instagram feed. She posted a video of herself breastfeeding her daughter Finty, who turns two in July, and wrote in the caption: “A few of you have messaged me about the recent Karen Millen comments on breastfeeding. While I’m really passionate about this subject, I think it’s more powerful to encourage open conversation than to shut people down for having a different opinion and here’s why.

“I’ve actually been on the other side of this before when I shared how much I loved breastfeeding. I got messages saying it was insensitive to those who couldn’t. So I really do understand that this topic stirs strong feelings on all sides.“But what’s important here and actually very positive is breastfeeding IS being spoken about more.“Conversations like this can shine a light on just how many mums want to try breastfeeding but don’t feel confident or supported enough to do it.“The UK has some of the lowest breastfeeding rates in the world. The studies show the biggest reasons are that many new mums feel unsure, judged, or alone so opt out before even trying.“The more we talk, the more we normalise. And the more we normalise, the more confident we become.“Above all, every mum deserves to make her own choices (whatever she feels is right for her) free from shame, and full of confidence.”

The NHS states and the World Health Organisation both have information on breastfeeding. The NHS recommends that mothers “breastfeed your baby exclusively (give them breast milk only) for the first 6 months of their life.

“Breastfeeding still has lots of benefits for you and your baby after 6 months. It protects them from infections and there’s some evidence that it helps with the digestion of your baby’s first solid foods. It also continues to provide the balance of nutrients your baby needs.”

Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation states: “WHO recommends you keep breastfeeding your child up to two years and beyond and for as long as you both want to continue. Breastfeeding never stops protecting children from infectious disease.”

Karen’s comments have caused a stir online as experts and mums commented on the apology post from Vanessa. One said: “When discussing topics like this on TV, it would be beneficial to also have an expert in infant feeding available, to negate opinions that the general public may deem as truth. Ie “breastfeeding isn’t beneficial after 6 months, it’s selfish”.”

Another added: “This really isn’t a full apology and it continues to spread misinformation. A 6 or 7 month old is not a toddler. Breastfeeding beyond infancy is normal, beneficial and recommended by the World Health Organization. The original statements about it being ‘selfish’ or causing ‘attachment issues’ were incredibly damaging to parents – and they remain untrue. If you’re going to use your platform to comment on infant feeding, please take the time to understand the evidence first. So many mums already feel guilt and pressure around feeding – this kind of messaging only makes it worse.”

And a third said: “I think this has made the situation worse, firstly the apology isnt really an apology, secondly they are justifying her answer with the 6 months comment at the end and “for longer if suits the family” but do not mention all the benefits up to the age of 2? It’s not just because it “suits” the family..”

Meanwhile, angry social media users are taking to Karen Millen’s brand page to share their anger over her recent comments as one said: “Donating all of my clothes with your label to charity and boycotting you for life. I’m currently breastfeeding a 4.5-year-old and, if you’d like to learn about the benefits, just visit the WHO and NHS website. Get yourself educated on breastfeeding before you spout incorrect information. You are entitled to your own opinion, but don’t state things as fact that aren’t.”

Another wrote: “This is actually breastfeeding friendly. Shame I would never purchase anything from a brand which shames the most selfless gift a mother can give her little one.” As a third wrote: “Stick to the dresses, let actual lactation consultants give advice on breastfeeding”.

The brand has now since issued a statement on their Instagram story, which read: “We hear and understand the concerns regarding Karen’s comments. To be clear, while Karen founded the brand, she is no longer involved in the business, and her comments do not reflect the views or values of our brand. We recognise the decision to breastfeed is deeply personal, and we fully support every parent in making the choices that are right for their family.”