Showbizz Journalist Numero Uno!
So Victoria, born in Liverpool (can’t believe you’re red and not blue), studied at Cambridge and then fell into life on Fleet Street where you worked on the Daily Express, The People, The Daily Mail and The Sun where you, in my eyes, was the best ever showbiz Editor the paper has ever had. What made you want to get into the journalist world in the first place?
“I started working on the student paper when I was at University and decided it sounded like great fun. I wrote away to all the national newspapers and all the regional newspaper groups with my cuttings and begged for a job, one of them was daft enough to give me a place on their trainee course.”
You went to a school in Nottinghamshire where your dad was deputy- headmaster… wasn’t that a bit difficult at times?
“I went to secondary school where my dad was the deputy head, which was a bit weird at times. But thankfully he tended to look after the most disruptive pupils so they tended not to give me a hard time. On the downside he knew everything there was to know about any boys I went out with…”
Your Bizarre column in The Sun, famous for Shagger of The Year and the Caner of The Year awards you presented at the end of the year – who over the years were the biggest Shagger of The Year and Caner of The Year?
“The biggest shagger of the year during my time on Bizarre was Blue’s Lee Ryan. He won it two years consecutively and was extremely proud of his achievement. I once gave Charlotte Church the Caner of the Year award for all her legendary drinking behaviour. She always used to say in interviews it was the only award she had ever won and that she got bollocked by her granny for winning it.”
Who has been the biggest celebrity you have interviewed?
“I think Paul McCartney is probably the biggest celebrity I’ve interviewed, no-one is bigger than the Beatles, are they? I’ve interviewed Al Gore and I went to the Dakota to interview Yoko Ono, which was surreal, but I think Macca beats the lot.”
What party or moment has been where you just have had to have a reality check and think, ‘oh my god is this really happening to me?’.
“The Oh My God, is this really happening to me moment would have to be backstage in the VIP area at Live 8. I had Bono on one arm and Macca on the other as they walked on to the stage to open the show. I still cant really believe that one.”
What was your biggest exclusive at Bizarre? Some great stories such as Posh Spice getting Pregnant and Gwyneth and Chris Martin…
“I guess I’ll always count Posh Pregnant (the first time with Brooklyn) as my biggest scoop. It definitely helped make my career and came at a time when the Spice Girls were the biggest thing on the planet. Its hard to believe but Posh was much more famous than David Beckham at the time. The story went round the world and my phone was ringing off the hook with inteview requests throughout the night. It was a good day for the paper and there were more Spice stories to follow. Our rivals never really got close on that subject!”
Winning Show Business Writer of the Year at The British Press Awards in 2006 – proud moment?
“I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was pleased to win the award.”
How instrumental in your showbiz career was former Editor Dominic Mohan?
“Dominic Mohan was, and still is, hugely influential in my career. I first met him when I was on the People and he was on the News of the world, we met at an awards bash, and ended up going to nightclubs together a lot. And when he was appointed Bizarre Editor following on from Andy Coulson he was asked to get a girl to do the column with and he chose me. He is now Deputy Editor of The Sun.”
Did you really bunk off school to watch Neighbours?
“Everyone bunked off school to watch Scott and Charlene’s wedding!”
Which celebrity has been the biggest pain in the arse to interview?
“The worst celebrity I think I’ve ever met and interviewed was Mick Hucknall. Obnoxious, unpleasant, and he supports Man United, need I say any more?”
The UK is renowned for building celebrities up, and then bringing them crashing down. Thoughts…
“Yes we like to build up celebs and then knock them down, but I think thats to do with being British rather than a fault of the media. I think its far more healthy than the celebrity worshipping that goes on in America where they really treat their celebs like royalty.”
And what are your thoughts of the constant hounding of celebrities by photographers outside their house’s?
“It all depends on the circumstances, who it is, why they are being watched, whether they have committed a crime, whether they are an MP caught out doing something wrong for example. Its too hard to generalise.”
Tell us about the falling down the stairs incident at the Madonna and Guy Ritchie party…
“I’m sure there are far worse incidents and scrapes than that Madonna party! It was the album launch for Music in a downtown club in LA, we’d had the coach journey from hell on the way there with a load of drunk competition winners who were sick on the coach. There were loads of famous faces there and I was quite excited to get so close to Madonna for the first time. I ended up tripping up down the stairs on the way out (it was the shoes, honest), and Vinnie Jones was on hand to help out. He’s a real gent.”
Your friend Louise, crazy huh?
“Well my crazy friend Louise, you know her well. She’s calmed down and grown up though now you know.”
Has a celebrity ever thrown a drink over you?
“No, a celeb has never thrown a drink at me. I was quite proud to have Catherine Zeta Jones to refer to me as “that woman who is trying to wreck my life” though.”
And finally, what celeb that you have interviewed did you fancy the most?
“Now that really is a tough one. Put it this way, I don’t think Take That ever have to worry about being turned over by me in the future… and Jamie Redknapp is probably safe too.”