Claudia Winkleman has a look so trademark she’s designed a make-up range for M&S. Here she tells Stylist how she found her beauty uniform – and why she’s never taking it off

Photography: David Oldham
Compiled by: Fiona Embleton
Beauty direction: Joanna McGarry

For the last 15 years, I’ve looked exactly the same – heaps of bronzer, pale pink lipstick, a full-on fringe and more black eyeliner than a Jack Sparrow impersonator. The brilliant thing is that it means I’ve never been recognised in my entire life – in normal, non-telly world I’m freakishly pale and don’t wear make-up. I’m on the Tube at least four times a day and the most I’ve ever had is “you look older than Davina McCall – but if it is you Davina please can you sign my book”. When I dye myself orange and stick on all the mascara however, then I know it must be work time and that in a minute I’m going to have to read out loud. Some people put on a power-suit, I grab a black shiny stick of kohl.

I experimented with some different and very weird looks as a teenager. Even though I was brought up in a house with no mirrors because my mother was a staunch feminist – what you looked like was absolutely second to what book you read and how funny you were. Even today I’d be more horrified if someone thought I’d asked a moronic question than if they didn’t like my make-up.

I was brought up on Dallas and Sue Ellen Ewing was my first beauty influence. The cool girls at school loved Pam played by Victoria Principal – she was beautiful and perfect and wore a cerise silk shirt and had a pink gloss on from the moment she woke up to the moment she went to bed. Too prim for me – I loved Linda Gray with her faux shaky hand and smudged make-up and pale lip. Since Dallas, I’ve always believed that pale is, in fact, not interesting and that orange is best. Lancôme Flash Bronzer is up there with the wheel for me. I recently ran out of the stuff and the scream from the bathroom was loud – my four-year-old ran in thinking I was being attacked by a shark.

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