New fears FOR FERN

Living with her cats near the Cornish coast, is the star finally feeling isolated?

- CHLOE THOMAS

The carefully photographed pictures of her cats are undoubtedly cute, the captions, typically witty, but there is much more to Fern Britton's social media presence than meets the eye.

The former This Morning presenter now lives in Cornwall following the end of her 20-year marriage to TV chef Phil Vickery in January 2020.

As part of the ongoing divorce settlement, Phil got to keep the house they shared in Buckinghamshire, while Fern moved permanently to the Cornish coast, a hous that she admits is ‘still in chaos'.

Although she has her feline friends and the odd TV and radio gig to keep her busy including Channel 5's My Cornwall with Fe Britton, sources worry that Fern is lonely and, at 64, is wondering what the future holds.

An avid Twitter user, Fern recently confessed to feeling directionless. Speaking into the void to her army of followers she said, 'Do you find that even though so much is happening in and around our lives, it still feels like groundhog day?' Beneath a photo of a younger, glammed-up version of herself in a short skirt, Fern wrote mournfully, "Those were the days.' She also retweeted a post from a fan wishing to see her back on telly, which said, "This was a cracker Fern Britton, would love to see you back on TV like this.' So, living hundreds of miles away from her old showbiz life with her three cats and daughter Winnie, 20, is it any wonder that Fern may be feeling just a little fed up?

She recently admitted to feeling in free fall, unsure which direction her life would take next. She said, 'I am in this transition period where I am working out what's next for me. I am thinking, hang on, where shall I go now?'

Fern was married to TV chef Phil Vickery for 20 years