We’ve made no secret of our love of Jane McDonald here at HuffPost UK, but there is another former ‘Loose Woman’ who also holds a special place in our heart: Denise Welch.
An actress, a presenter, a ‘Celebrity Big Brother’ champ, not to mention a serial flasher, there isn’t much Denzy hasn’t done the in three decades she’s been on our screens.
With that in mind, we believe wor Geordie lass is more than deserving of the title of the true Angel of the North, and here are all the times she’s proved that...
1. She is responsible for the single best celebrity photo of all time
2. Her topless hot tub moment with in the ‘Celebrity Big Brother’ house went down in reality TV history
3. Her womance with Carol McGiffin is ultimate friendship goals
4. She totally out-shone global superstar Britney Spears when she interviewed her on ‘Loose Women’
“I’ve always felt that although I’m a few years older than you, I have quite a lot in common with you. Obviously we’re both mums, we’re both global superstars, and clearly both femme fatales.”
This was Britney’s reaction:
5. But, like, she clearly is a femme fatale
6. She doesn’t put up with any of the shit Katie Hopkins et al stand for
7. As part of Nanas Aloud, she brought us three joyful minutes of television during 2010’s Children In Need
8. Cheryl eat your heart out
9. It’s not the first time she’s been compared to ‘wor Chezza’
10. And while her turn in Nanas Aloud may suggest Denzy doesn’t have the strongest voice, she actually had a number 23 smash in 1993
11. And let’s not forget her appearance on the celebrity version of ‘Stars In Their Eyes’, when she impersonated Petula Clark
12. Nanas Aloud isn’t the only girlband she’s been a part of either
13. She’s worked tirelessly to end stigma around mental health issues, having suffered from clinical depression herself
“'Snap out of it, pull yourself together'. People say it, or think it, a lot. It’s the most pointless comment, because if you could snap out of it you would, wouldn’t you? I was lucky, my family never doubted I had anything other than a serious illness, but it was hard for my husband. He’d go to the pub and his mates would say, 'Bloody hell, how long is that going to go on, take her out and buy her a new dress.' Unless you’ve experienced it, it’s almost impossible to really understand mental illness. You can’t explain clinical depression to anybody.”
- Denise Welch
14. She’s one of few actresses who has had the honour of starring in two of the nation’s best loved soaps
15. Remember the time she turned up to an event dressed as a can of Lilt?
16. And where do we even start with this?
17. Her stint on ‘Dancing On Ice’ was legendary (and not just because of her array of wigs)
18. She’s parent to the lead singer of the biggest band in the country right now, but that doesn’t stop her from being an embarrassing mum
19. But she also could not be prouder of her boy and all of his success
20. Although we’re not too sure The 1975 would have hit it quite as big if they’d gone with Denise’s suggestion for a name
21. After realising she had a problem with alcohol, she turned her life around
“Ultimately, it’s got to be a good thing and being sober doesn’t mean being boring, I have more fun than I’ve ever had now than when I was drinking.”
- Denise Welch
22. She’s never afraid to say what she really thinks
23. She also once gave her own Christmas message, because let’s be real, she is a true queen 👑
WHAT A WOMAN
