It's the Queen's big week as the Platinum Jubilee celebrations mark her 70 years of service to the nation. And during Her Majesty's record-breaking reign, former BBC royal reporter Jennie Bond has become a bit of a Great British institution herself.
When we arrive at her house, a short drive from the Devonshire coast, the 71-year-old greets us in a suitably patriotic outfit of a blue tea dress, a pearl necklace and red lipstick. It's 8 am and Jennie asks Alexa to play some music, then pops the kettle on. If she's not working, she's usually doing a Zoom Pilates class or looking after her three Shetland ponies. "They poo 19 times a day!" she laughs. Still, the chore keeps her fit.
Originally a First World War Army barracks with acres of land, Jennie's house - which she bought in 1992 with husband Jim, 83 - is vast and colorful, with the furniture and walls all hand-painted by her. Yet you won't see any photos of her with the royals she followed for so many years. "Selfies weren't a thing then," she says. "It's not very cool to ask the Queen for a quick pic, is it?"
Jennie quit her role at the BBC in 2003 to make a permanent move to Devon. During the height of her royal reporting, she would travel 10 hours to London and back again, suffering waves of mum guilt for leaving her then-young daughter Emma, 32, behind.
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Denne historien er fra June 06, 2022-utgaven av OK! UK.
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