Katie Piper captured the public consciousness back in 2008 when Channel 4 screened the harrowing, Bafta award-winning documentary, Katie: My Beautiful Face. The programme gave an insight to her recovery from a brutal acid attack she suffered, aged just 24.
More than most celebrities, she has the challenge of balancing her presenting career with tremendous voluntary commitments, as trustee of The Katie Piper Foundation supporting burns victims nationwide.
Unsurprisingly, Katie was the last person to whinge about simply being asked to stay at home with her family as the country, and indeed the world, began the surreal onset of social distancing in March.
Unbeknown to her while filming, it was the first official lockdown Mother’s Day weekend when her appearance on BBC1’s Songs of Praise was screened and Katie’s revelations of finding faith put the experience firmly into perspective.
Filmed in her hometown church in Andover, Hampshire, Katie, now 36, spoke about a spiritual experience shortly after coming out of an induced coma following a vicious assault by her ex-boyfriend and a subsequent shocking sulphuric acid attack organised by him.
‘Religion had been a big part of my life and my recovery,’ reveals Katie. ‘I didn’t have aspirations to go on the show, but they approached me and I thought, actually that’s really lovely and totally different for me. Why not? It was also a chance to talk about my charity.’
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