A Changed Woman

Alex Jones on her joy at being a new mum, her hopes for a second child and what it means to be back on The One Show.

- Kerry Potter

Alex Jones admits to feeling a mix of ‘nervousness’ and ‘excitement’ when she returned to The One Show last month after taking maternity leave to give birth to her first child.

But Alex, who recently turned 40, is clearly revelling in being mum to four-month-old Teddy and is feeling generally relaxed about life.

‘I don’t look the same as I did before, but I’m all right about that – life isn’t just about me any more,’ says Alex, who lives with her baby boy and her insurance broker husband Charlie Thomson in Chiswick, west London.

‘I don’t care if I’m a bit wobbly or look more tired, because it’s all part of the fun of being a parent; it’s a badge of honour. I haven’t felt the pressure yet [to get back into shape], but it’s early days. I wouldn’t say I don’t care if I never get back to how I was. But it took nine months to make him, so if it takes nine months to get back into my old jeans, then so be it.’

During her three-and-a-half-month maternity leave her place on the show’s sofa was kept warm by Angela Scanlon (host of Robot Wars) and Watchdog presenter Michelle Ackerley.

So did she experience maternity-leave paranoia, as chillingly depicted in the BBC1 thriller The Replacement earlier this year, in which a high-flying architect (played by Morven Christie) goes on maternity leave – only to discover her cover (Vicky McClure) has a sinister agenda?