GIRLIE GETAWAY - ‘WE'RE LIKE A SPONSORED TALKATHON WHEN WE GET TOGETHER'

DENISE WELCH KATE THORNTON ANGELA LONSDALE AND JENNY POWELL INVITE OK! TO JOIN THEM IN MALTA FOR A MUCH-NEEDED BREAK

- KAT ROMERO

There was a time during lockdown when we feared we may never be able to set foot on a plane again, let alone bask in the glow of a faraway sunset. But with the situation starting to ease in many parts of the world, many of us have opted for a much-needed getaway. And taking full advantage were best friends Denise Welch, Jenny Powell, Angela Lonsdale and Kate Thornton, who invited OK! to join them on their recent sun-soaked trip to Malta.

“There’s now a load of boring old forms to fill in, and menopausal women in masks is never a good combo,” Denise, 62, tells us as we catch up with the ladies while they sun themselves by the pool – keeping a safe distance. “But it’s such a treat to get away.”

“Lockdown made me feel more grateful,” actress Angela, 50, adds. “I feel grateful to reconnect with my best friends. Our first night here we were all so giddy to be together. It was a barmy hot summer’s night.”

“The taxi driver Ray fancied you all!” Denise interrupts before the ladies erupt into laughter.

“That first night is my favourite memory too,” Kate, 47, says. “Not having to cook a meal for ourselves and to just all be together. I arrived ahead of the girls and I was on my sun lounger FaceTiming them all while they were about to fly out of the airport. That was when it hit me – I was in a foreign country on holiday! When I saw them it felt like a dream sequence. There was a time when we thought we’d never get on a plane again!”