EXCLUSIVE: The 66-year-old TV chef, who will join Channel 4’s Great British Bake Off as a new co-judge later this year, has credited her glowing skin to one simple ingredient.
Nigella attributes her flawless face to eating a lot of butter and avoiding the sun (Image: INSTAGRAM)
Nigella Lawson has revealed the secret to her famous glowing skin – and it has nothing to do with Botox or fillers.
The 66-year-old domestic goddess, who will join The Great British Bake Off as a judge when it returns this autumn, instead vows to follow a high-fat diet and stay out of the sun.
“I really believe in butter. I just eat what I want,” she told The Mirror. “I enjoy life, but I also know myself. I don’t punish myself by trying to look like a model. So it’s good – I’m just limping along and enjoying myself.”
Nigella attributes her flawless face to eating a lot of butter and avoiding the sun (Image: INSTAGRAM)
The best-selling cookbook author added that she categorically refuses to participate in cosmetic “tunings.” “I actually think (good) skin is genetic,” she said.
“I’m also allergic to the sun, so I don’t go out in the sun, and that makes a difference. It’s been like this my whole life, but it’s gotten worse. I just can’t go out in it. It’s boring, actually.”
Skin experts say avoiding the sun’s UV rays is one of the most effective ways to keep your skin looking youthful.
The new Bake Off judge says her sun allergy means she has to avoid direct sunlight, which is good for her skin (Image: Getty Images)
Nigella added: “Having a little fat on your face helps. I don’t do filler or anything like that. Cosmetic work is tyranny. I just don’t think it makes sense.”
Her outlook on aging and gratitude for what she already has, including her health, was shaped by the deaths of three close family members from cancer.
Her mother, socialite Vanessa Salmon, died of liver cancer when Nigella was 25 years old. Eight years later, her younger sister Thomasina died of breast cancer at the age of 32.
Then, in 2001, Nigella’s first husband, TV presenter John Diamond, father of her children Cosima, 32, and Bruno, 29, died aged 47 from throat cancer.
Nigella’s first husband, TV presenter John Diamond, father of her children Cosima, 32, and Bruno, 29, died aged 47 from throat cancer (Image: Getty Images)
Speaking to us at the book launch at Nobu in central London, Nigella continued: “It would be immoral if I complained about getting old – so I don’t complain. We shouldn’t complain about getting old. Life is precious. I’m not saying we can’t all moan about things – I think we should be able to do that.”
The TV star, who was married to art collector and advertising mogul Charles Saatchi for ten years until 2013, admitted, however, that finding a balance between gratitude and life’s daily challenges is easier said than done.
“A sense of proportion is not always easy to maintain,” she said. “Loss is something you have to experience within yourself.”
Earlier this year, the TV star said she was “bumming with excitement” about taking part in Bake Off, which began filming in April and will air this autumn (Image: Ken Mackay/ITV/Shutterstock)
Nigella began filming the new series of Channel 4’s Bake Off in April, joining Paul Hollywood as a judge after Dame Prue Leith stepped down after nine series.
Commenting on her new role earlier this year, Nigella said: “I’m strangely speechless at the moment.
“Of course it’s difficult to follow in the footsteps of Prue Leith and Mary Berry before her – both great ladies – but I’m also filled with excitement.” She added: “The Great British Pageant is more than a television programme, it is a national treasure and it is a huge honor to be entrusted with it.
“I am very excited to join the team and all the future new bakers. I wish the wonderful Prue all the best and am incredibly grateful for this opportunity.”