Vick Hope on creativity, coping mechanisms, and why she's passionate about driving change

When Marie Claire met Vick Hope, she was mere hours off a plane from Tokyo, where she'd just wrapped presenting on Channel 4’s Paralympic cycling coverage from the Izu Velodrome. Was she jet lagged? Slightly, she admits, but is quick to caveat: “In a good way. I think I’m on the good side of things. I got up at 6am and went for a run.” 

She’s not bragging, she’s just being Vick Hope: Cambridge graduate, former Capital Breakfast show host, TV presenter, Marie Claire Future Shaper winner and all round force for good (and that's just the shortened version of her accolades, FYI). 

Passionate about amplifying voices that have traditionally been excluded from the mainstream narrative – namely, those of women and young people – it only made sense that the broadcasting powerhouse would be our first call when it came to launching our Driven series in partnership with Ford.

Why? Well, because her drive to bring positivity and joy onto airwaves and screens is matched only by her drive to make a difference. “I always try to remember that I started in this job as a journalist because I wanted to give a voice to people who perhaps [didn’t have one]; I wanted their stories to be told,” she tells MC’s Editor Holly Rains during the sit-down; in which the pair chat everything from burnout to building confidence. 

Visit the Driven Hub to find out more tips on how to create more, do more and change more…

Just how does she do it all? It took some time to get the balance right, she admits. “I’m always thinking, ‘What next? I’m supposed to be ambitious, I’m supposed to achieve this, I’m supposed to achieve that…’ And no. Why don’t we just stop, look back, and take stock of what we did? Be proud of yourself.”

Don't think the confidence she emanates now hasn't been a long-term project, though. “I’m a very passionate person,” she tells Holly. “Loving what you do and caring about what you do is a confidence in itself. As soon as I realised that I could be nerdy, geeky, emotional – that’s when I became a better broadcaster, and I found confidence in being myself.”

Her advice for getting there? 

“Learn that you are enough. You as you are enough – you don’t have to pretend to be anyone else.”

Being happy for other people was also a turning point, she says. “I think we get so wrapped up in ourselves, and worrying about the past, and worrying about the future, that we forget about what’s going on right now. And a really good way of centring yourself and being in the moment is literally just looking at someone you just really want to say ‘well done’ to. I always like to just dish out a compliment: polish each other's crowns, be there for one another and champion one another. I like to celebrate the other people around me who I think are doing brilliant work.” 

There's only one Vick Hope, but if we could all strive to be a little more like her, there's no doubt that the world would be a much more positive place indeed.

Watch the full Driven series here.