Clare Balding and her wife Alice Arnold have been appearing on Celebrity Gogglebox together since 2021 and the BBC Sport presenter has issued a warning to her partner
Clare Balding issued a heads-up to spouse Alice Arnold when they began featuring on Celebrity Gogglebox as a duo. The BBC Sport host and her other half started gracing the popular Channel 4 programme in 2021.
Whilst Clare has remained a familiar face for more than three decades, joining the BBC’s Royal Ascot presenting squad in 1995, Alice has predominantly worked behind the microphone in radio. Nevertheless, Clare reveals Alice has proved a massive hit amongst Gogglebox fans.
Clare confesses she finds it “very easy” to pause and have a natter with folk on the street, be it discussing Crufts, Wimbledon, or the Paralympics, reports Wales Online. Yet this aspect of celebrity life is something Alice is currently having to “get used to”.
Speaking on the Gaby Roslin podcast, Clare revealed: “What I quite enjoy is that because Alice and I do Gogglebox together the reaction now is, ‘Oh we love you on Gogglebox and your wife’s so funny’, and I go, ‘She’s much funnier than me’, and they go, ‘Yeah she is’.
“I quite enjoy that. Alice is having to get used to being recognised because for years she has been on the radio, whether it’s Radio 4 or now Mellow Magic, but not a recognised face, so she now has to get used to that and I go, ‘You’ve got to smile at people, be nice to people’.”
Clare explains Alice possesses a “much shorter attention span” and less tolerance than herself.
She acknowledges that Alice will sometimes feel as though she “doesn’t want to talk” to members of the public, which stands in sharp contrast to Clare’s approach. Clare has previously disclosed that she and Alice were “cautious” about allowing the Gogglebox cameras into their home.
However, she acknowledged it presented an excellent opportunity to showcase an older same-sex couple in their domestic setting.
In a 2021 interview with the Metro, she explained: “We’ve been together for nearly 20 years now and it’s still rare to see older same-sex couples, sitting at home, watching telly like everyone else.
“I’m a believer in being yourself, happy and relaxed, and am quietly proud because that’s a strong message for adults and parents.
“I know people say this isn’t an issue these days but it is and there are still some communities and areas where there’s an element of shame attached to being gay or having a child who is. I wanted to show that, ‘Look, it’s nothing, there’s no issue here.’ Gogglebox was a good way of doing that.”
Clare and Alice first crossed paths in 1999 whilst both were employed by the BBC.
Their friendship developed before romance flourished in 2002.
The couple entered into a civil partnership in 2006 before exchanging vows in an intimate wedding ceremony in 2015.
Clare will grace television screens later today as she joins Matt Tebbutt on Saturday Kitchen Live from 10am on BBC One. She will feature on the programme alongside chefs Karan Gokani and Melanie Brown.