Scarlett Moffatt has grown up in the glare of the media spotlight, after shooting to fame on Gogglebox in 2014 before being crowned queen of the I’m a Celebrity jungle two years later.
The star – who turns 30 in October – has always been open about her struggles with self-confidence and confesses negativity on social media has brought her to tears in the past.
But now it’s clear Scarlett is learning to love herself and has finally found happiness with her policeman boyfriend Scott Dobinson.
Hi Scarlett, how confident are you feeling at the moment?
I’d be lying if I said I’m confident all the time. I know sometimes I try to put the message across that we should just be who we are, but I have bad days as well. There are some days I look at myself and I think, ‘I just can’t be bothered today,’ or I’m having a bad hair day. I’ve even had days where I don’t like my feet!
Has your body confidence changed with age?
I just think I care less about other people’s negative opinions now that I’m turning 30 this year. My mum’s always said that her 30s were the best time and that you don’t care so much about what people think – it’s true. I’m not saying that negative things don’t hurt my feelings, but I now step back and think, ‘Will what they’re saying affect me in a year’s time?’ If the answer is no, I just let it go because it doesn’t really matter.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Everything’s going to be OK, so don’t stress so much. My little sister is 13 and just unapologetically herself. I wish that I was a little bit more like her. I tried so hard to fit in all the time and I think I would just tell myself, ‘Don’t bother!’ because if you’re having to constantly change and subtly adapt yourself for other people, you probably should just find some new friends.
How do you deal with trolls on social media?
I genuinely feel a little bit sad for trolls, because I’ve never been in a place where I’ve looked at a photo or watched a show and thought, ‘What I’m going to do is send that person an awful message.’ Especially if I can see that it’s the same person messaging repeatedly. I honestly will just reply to them and say, ‘It’s gonna be alright and if you really dislike me, maybe just unfollow me because it’ll just cause a lot less stress and aggro!’
You’ve been with your boyfriend Scott for over a year now. What’s the best thing about him?
Sometimes if I have a bad day [at work], I’ll get home and I’ll get upset about little things like the train being delayed or them not having any sandwiches. But then he’ll tell me about his day working in the police and it quickly brings you back down to earth. He’s really happy all the time and if he can be happy and not get stressed, I’ve no right to [be either].
Is he supportive of your job?
He obviously doesn’t want all of this, but he just loves me for me. And even my mum and dad like him, which has actually never happened, so I know he’s a keeper.
Tell us about your new range of clothes at Peacocks…
Everyone’s got a certain outfit that you put on and you feel like you’re invincible, so I’ve tried to make sure everybody feels invincible in these clothes. I’ve tried to go for long sleeves and relaxed fits, so that nobody’s looking in the mirror picking on themselves. We’re the worst bullies to ourselves. If people said the sort of things that I say to myself when I look in the mirror, you’d tell them to eff off!
What else have you got coming up in the future?
I did The Great Celebrity Bake Off For Stand up to Cancer, which was honestly so much fun. It turns out I’m not quite as terrible a baker as I thought I was and I’ve become good friends with Patsy Palmer. I just love her, she’s amazing!
