LOVING LIFE AWAY FROM SCREEN
CHRIS Tarrant is not keen to take on lots of TV work these days.
The presenter only signs up for shows he is really excited about.
At 77, work is no longer a priority for him – and he’s finally taking things easy.
He told the Daily Star Sunday: “I spent 50 years of my life in studios of one sort or another. I really don’t want to go back and do all that again.
“I certainly don’t want to do a game show again or chat show or anything like that. Everyone is doing a podcast, but there are so many other things I’d rather be doing. “Even with shows that I like, I think, ‘I can’t be bothered.’ I’m just not interested.” Chris worked around the clock for decades. The veteran starred on a string of top shows, including Man O Man, O.T.T., Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? and Tiswas. There was also a gruelling stint as the host of Capital FM’s breakfast show that involved very early starts. He added: “For 17 years, I was getting up at 5am and crawling into a studio for a 6am start. I did stuff like that for donkeys’ years. “It’s almost brainless in a way. I’d get up, go to work on the radio, then go off to do Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? “I then went home and slept. Then I’d get up and do it again.
“It was a tremendous time. It was a great time in my life. But we were all knackered.
“I was knackered, my driver was knackered.”
Now Chris takes on less work, he’s able to relax a bit more. That involves spending plenty of time with loved ones.
And he enjoys it so much he has no intention of ever working that hard again.
He said: “These days I’m catching up with a lot of time with people I love.”
Chris is also keen to make the most of his later years. He added: “I don’t need to work and I’m actually really enjoying now, for the first time, really having some time to do what I want.” He opens up about his career in his autobiography It’s Not A Proper Job, which is available from Great Northern Books at gnbooks.co.uk