Tess Daly, the host of Strictly Come Dancing, has been a well-known face since she was 17 years old, but many viewers are unaware of the significance of her real name.
You know we’re heading towards Christmas when Strictly Come Dancing is back on our screens, in a flurry of fake tan and sequins. Battling it out this year are stars including Stefan Dennis, Thomas Skinner, Vicky Pattison and George Clarke – yet apparently some of them have been left fuming over their wildy-different wages.
You can anticipate them to demonstrate all of their best moves in front of the show’s adored judges, including co-hosts Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly, among others.
Tess has been a star on television since she was just 17-years-old. The 56-year-old television personality started a modeling career after being discovered waiting for her sister outside a McDonald’s in Manchester. Tess wasn’t always referred to as such.
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Indeed, ‘Tess’ isn’t her genuine name but rather a professional alias, a revelation that has stunned viewers. Born in 1969 as Helen Elizabeth Daly, she embraced the name Tess upon beginning her modelling journey, though never officially altered it out of deference to her parents, Vivian and Sylvia.
She explained the reasons behind her change of name, adding that Helen Davies was already working for her agency when she first started modeling at age 17. In response, it was suggested that she give up “Henry Daly” because of its similarity. Her agent, who was “obsessed” with Nastassja Kinski, the star of the 1979 film Tess, suggested the name Tess.
Tess, who presents Strictly alongside Claudia Winkleman, remembered: “So Tess it was. I was gullible and impressionable. Mind you, two weeks later, I was in Japan, then I travelled the world Paris, Milan, New York,” reports OK! The television darling has admitted that only one person persistently adheres to her actual name, disclosing: “My mum’s really the only person who still calls me Helen, and that’s not often. She tends to call me ‘love’, so when she does say ‘Helen’ it can take me a while to respond.”
Tess admitted that she never changed it because she believes it would disrespect my parents.
Fans were shocked to learn that Tess Daly’s real name is Helen, and one person posted a shocked video on social media. I feel lied to because I can’t look at her at the same time.
Another person said, “I’ve never known her since I was a baby. “I have so many questions,” added a third person.
Nevertheless, Tess and her husband BBC Radio 2 presenter Vernon Kay wed using her original surname back in 2003. The pair exchanged vows in a heartfelt ceremony in Vernon’s hometown of Bolton on September 12, 2003, and are doting parents to two girls, Phoebe and Amber.
Last year Tess shared her tips for maintaining her youthful appearance while acknowledging that wrinkles are simply a part of growing older. In a candid chat with Closer, she shared confessed, “I’ve got wrinkles galore. You know when you look down at your iPhone and the camera is open, and you go, ‘Oh my God!’ I’m at that point – but what’s the alternative?”.
Tess revealed she follows a specific skincare routine to maintain her youthful glow, admitting to wearing less makeup now than in her younger years, even on television.
Tess insists she hasn’t had cosmetic surgery, but she does spend money on skin treatments like Ultratherapy, which start at around £500.
READ MORE: ‘I tested this £28 foundation – it’s a dream and made my face glow all day’
Source: Mirror
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