knew I was lucky I already Michael..when you know someone you can trust them

Davina McCall fronts a show where singletons' grownup kids help them find love with a stranger but her own approach to romance was the complete opposite.

- NICOLA METHVEN

After splitting from second husband Matthew Robertson in 2017, she found love again not with a new Romeo but with an old friend. She first met hairstylist Michael Douglas - not the actor - while working on Big Brother from 2000 to 2010.

But they did not become an official item until 2019.

Davina says: "I was lucky that Michael is someone I already knew. When you know someone, you can trust them and you know that they know you. It's a solid, nice feeling."

The presenter, 57 next month, had not expected to fall in love again in her 50s and had also thought her TV career would be over by this time too.

Davina, who in January was made an MBE for services to broadcasting, says: "I honestly felt that I might be retired by the public by the time I was about 50.

"Then I got to 51 and thought 'don't tell anyone, no one's noticed, I can just carry on quietly"."

And after winning a special recognition gong at the National Television Awards last week, she told the Mirror backstage: "I feel like I'm having one of the greatest decades of my life. It's so fun."

Davina, who celebrated the award with a hug from pal Hannah Waddingham and with an A-list group photo, adds of her 49-yearold lover: "Michael Douglas.. I love being on this journey with you."

The second series of her show My Mum, Your Dad launches on ITV tonight, with young adults helping match their single parents with a prospective partner.