5 minutes with... Amanda Lamb

Amanda Lamb

Amanda Lamb

A Place In The Sun presenter Amanda Lamb co-hosts a new TV series, Family Supercooks, weeknights on Good Food from October 26.

The 37-year-old from Portsmouth began her career as an estate agent, before becoming a successful model as the face of Scottish Widows from 1994-2005.

She had her first child, Willow, in February.

IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU'VE BEEN BUSY RECENTLY?

It doesn't stop, it's mad at the moment. I've just had a little girl as well, so I've been trying to be a mum while doing all these different TV things. Which is brilliant and I'm loving every second of it, but you become very good at multitasking. I'm feeding Willow now!

DID YOU ENJOY MAKING FAMILY SUPERCOOKS?

I had a ball. At the beginning, Paul Merrett and I were both wondering what standard of food we would get, because a lot of people think they're good cooks, and these are recipes that have been passed down generation-to-generation. We were thinking, 'Are we going to be pleasantly surprised, or are we going to be absolutely horrified?', and they were brilliant. It was lovely working with Paul, because he's a Michelin-starred chef and he knows a huge amount about food. I know what I like, and I know that I like to eat it, so it's good to have that combination.

DO YOU REPRESENT THE LAYMAN'S POINT OF VIEW ON THE SHOW?

Yes, when I first started presenting Market Kitchen a lot of people said, 'But she's not a chef'. Well, I'm not a chef, but I love food and I love cooking at home, so even though I'm not a chef I do what everybody else does - and I eat lots of it. I think the lovely thing is that there's so much negativity about family food, and how we've become a nation of people who don't sit around the table together, and just use microwave dinners, so it was a real joy to realise that actually, it's still alive and well.

WAS FOOD A BIG PART OF YOUR FAMILY?

Absolutely. I can remember every Saturday morning baking cakes with my mum, or making apple crumbles on a Sunday. We always used to have afternoon tea in our house, with sandwiches and a cake of some description, and that's something I do now. I do a lot of baking at home, and when Willow gets a little bit older, I'm going to rope her in to help.

HAS YOUR ATTITUDE TO FOOD CHANGED SINCE HAVING A BABY?

I've definitely become a lot more efficient, I've become the queen of the one-pot wonders. I did a big Sunday lunch at the weekend for some friends, and as lovely as it was, it was just so all-consuming. I was making a chocolate cake, and I'd just whisked the egg whites when Willow started to puke everywhere. So it was like, 'Aaaaargh!'. I've had to become a lot more organised.

HAVE YOU FINISHED FILMING THE SERIES NOW?

We did it in two weeks - it was kind of: get in, eat for two weeks and get out. At one point, Paul and I ate 22 different dishes in one day. I loved making it though - I keep thinking it would be a good show to do with celebrity families.

DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER DREAM PROJECTS?

Someone who I think has a really great career, and who I would love to do some of the stuff she does, is Kate Humble. I'm really into history, and I'd love to go on Who Do You Think You Are? The shows that I do at the moment are such fun, though. I've got a new property show starting in October, so at the moment the balance is just right, but I'd love to do something like Springwatch, or Autumnwatch, or Winterwatch.

DIDN'T YOU BEGIN YOUR CAREER AS AN ESTATE AGENT?

When I was 16 and I left school, I went straight into estate agency. I did that until I was about 21, when I got discovered at the Clothes Show Live Exhibition, and thought, 'Well, I might as well give it a quick crack and see what happens', and that was 16 years ago. Where's it gone?

DO YOU THINK PEOPLE LIKE SEEING A MODEL WHO EATS?

I hope so, but I think one of the things about me is that I was never very good at being a model, I was always being told I was too big and that I had to lose weight. I think life is too short to deny yourself. I'm a big believer in everything in moderation. As long as you exercise, take care of yourself, and don't stuff your face with chocolate cake every day, you're halfway there. It's good to allow yourself to have a treat. I'm good 90% of the time, and then 10% I'm not.

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