By Amanda Cassidy
27th Aug 2022
27th Aug 2022
Raised in Bray, Co Dublin by her mother, Laura Whitmore started her career in the spotlight early, reaching the final fifteen in a modelling talent search in 2003 run by The Late Late Show on RTE.
After a stint in Newstalk, Laura hit headlines in 2008 when she signed up for a show named Pick Me MTV . The aim of the game was to be selected to be the face of MTV Europe’s news show. Laura was successful and went on to host the news bulletins on the station from 2008 until 2015.
Next came her stint on Strictly Come Dancing where the Dubliner was partnered with Giovanni Pernice where she tangoed her way through six shows before being voted off after losing the dance-off with Ore Oduba. Huge hosting gigs on Survival of the Fittest, and the spin off to ‘I’m a Celebrity” Get Me Out Of Here Now brought Laura’s unique flair to millions of viewers.
The Love Island presenting job followed shortly afterwards. Whitmore joined the show as a temporary replacement for Caroline Flack after Flack was arrested, accused of assaulting her partner. After Flack’s tragic suicide in 2020, Whitmore remained as host.
Her book No One Can Change Your Life But You hit shelves around the same time. It was described as “funny, positive and life-affirming” by Sara Pascoe, who added “Laura is like a PT for your self-confidence”.
Meanwhile her love life was turning stellar too. Meeting at an ITV part in 2017, Laura dated comedian Iain Stirling. He proposed to the broadcaster in South Africa and they got married in Dublin. The birth of their daughter Stevie Ré soon followed.
But it wasn’t all smooth sailing. Comments made by Laura in relation to a journalist’s threat to publish her baby daughter’s name prompted some to call her a hypocrite for pushing the Be Kind hashtag.
And while some defended Whitmore’s right to privacy, many social media users were quick to criticise her response, arguing that it was unnecessary to name and shame a journalist for doing their job.
“Laura Whitmore being the head of the ‘be kind’ police following Caroline Flack’s death only to send her followers after a female journalist for ‘politely’ asking her AGENT for confirmation of her baby’s name is just a bit :/ to me,” wrote on Twitter user.
“[Laura Whitmore] is a student of journalism, a former showbiz reporter, has done a few pregnancy photo-shoots with the media, but God forbid the media ask her about her baby’s name, I don’t get it,” wrote another user.
But now Laura Whitmore is beginning a new chapter. She’s turning her hand to her original passion – journalism, with the news of a new show called Laura Whitmore Investigates. The series will see Laura explore “the worlds where sex and power collide,” delving into “edgy, difficult worlds”.
She’s described it as “a dream come true” to return to her journalism roots.
In a statement on Instagram, last week, the Irish presenter mentioned elements of the production of Love Island that she found “difficult” prompting her to prefer to do something different.
“Some news!” she wrote. “I won’t be hosting the next series of Love island. There are certain elements of the show I’ve found very difficult that cannot be changed some due to the format, including the flying back and forth to South Africa along with my new conflicting projects. I wish it was still possible but know you’ll be in safe hands. I was only planning to fill in for Caroline for a series and it turned into 3 series. I hope I did you proud Caroline.”
ITV thanked Whitmore for her hosting saying they “respect her decision” and “look forward to working with her on upcoming ITV projects.”
Now, as well as her podcast Partners in Crime that she co-presents with her husband, it’s been announced that she would be joining the West End hit 2:22 A Ghost Story in September.
What many don’t know is that Laura trained at the Leinster School of Music and Drama and studied Shakespeare at RADA. She’s take to the stage alongside Tamsin Carroll, Felix Scott and Matt Willis, having also recently stopped working on her BBC Radio 5 Live Show.
Today, posting a sweet image with her baby daughter toddling along in the leaves, the presenter seemed to be making the most of her change in lifestyle. “My favourite time of the year,” she captioned it, “and first day off”.
The start of a brand new chapter.
Also Read
